


|15. 07. 19.|

by moonkissed_norwegian



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Romance, Underfell Sans cries and hides himself away in a room listening to Cavetown, Underfell! Papyrus is more of a sweetheart than a douchebag in this story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-29
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2020-07-24 20:35:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 35,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20020639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonkissed_norwegian/pseuds/moonkissed_norwegian
Summary: You've made a lot of mistakes, things you can't reverse. The forest stretched on and the night sky seemed to twinkle endlessly. What are you supposed to do? This was way too hard to deal with, why did you have to deal with this anyway? It wasn't fair. Fuck, life wasn't fair. His white fur tickled your nose as you sobbed into the body cradled into your arms, trying to make some sort of sense of this.Tires screech and then there's two suns, blinding you and washing warmth over you. It was nice, this felt nice. Things would be easier if it happened this way. Karl, here you come.---During a night where everything seemed like it was crashing down, you happened upon a few skeletons that help you bury your dead cat. One of them is just absolutely livid that you suicide-sat in the pathway that you didn't even know was a pathway and his drunk brother and friend try to sing to you comfortingly. This night isn't making any sense, but at least they're kind.





	1. karl's story

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This first chapter has mentions of death and kind of graphic details, so if you're sensitive to this sort of thing, please steer clear. There are a few events here that are heavily influenced by things I have experienced, so I'm giving a heads-up. The first few paragraphs also include suicide/mentions of suicide, but they aren't necessarily wanted. More of a fleeting thing, if anything. Just stay safe!
> 
> Post warning: I, uh, also accidentally posted this way too early. This chapter isn't finished, I promise. But I guess it's sort of spoiled now? I was trying to get the story started because I really had itching fingers today and needed to write, so once I work on 'bello, ciao,' I still wanted to write. Sorry, guys. Please forgive me and don't steal my femurs. 
> 
> I have a few fanfiction ideas that I want to write, so I'll probably be updating each of my stories at least once a week. Also, please try not to trash this first chapter too badly, I'm writing this to hopefully help heal and move on from something rather traumatic that occurred to me in real life. 
> 
> Have fun and let me know if you would like for me to include more than just the Underfell boys in a romantic sense!

This was stupid. Your feet galloped over the underbrush, going on and on. Every muscle in your body ached, lungs begging for air but you refused to stop. Thundering across the forest floor as tears streamed down the apples of your face, torrential and swimming in a sea of flashing lights and blurry vision. This hurt. This hurt so bad. How long had you been running? God, it felt like hours. Wind whipped your face, skin stinging at the sharp, cool air and your hair flowed roughly behind you. No matter how far you ran, you couldn't get the image of his big, obsidian pupils or the way his eyes were wide and unseeing as they focused on something yet nothing out of your head. You pressed the cat's head closer to your chest, hand cupping his cheek as you tore your eyes from the forest and looked down. His jaw was agape, locked into a never-ending yowl. The sound of his muted meows and last few weak pants echoed in your ears, a sob racking through you as you wrenched your eyes shut. Legs pushing forward until your right leg reached out, hoping to hit the ground but coming up short as you quickly tumbled down. A yelp slipped past your lips as your body toppled down the small incline, rolling slowly to a stop as you curled up on the dusty ground. 

Loose dirt dug into the ducts of your eyes as you tried to push yourself up, your spine popping out in a cry of disagreement at your meek attempt to stand. You flopped back down onto the earth, laying on your side as more tears fell down in salty hot, bulbous droplets. Your throat was parched, dry from screaming and crying so hard. The time didn't feel real, _this_ didn't feel real. You a few hours ago didn't exist anymore, a faraway memory of a fit of fury and running. 

Karl was dead. You couldn't believe he was actually gone. He was the best damn cat that you had ever had. He didn't deserve this, you didn't deserve that. Watching Karl pass over was one of the worst things you had ever laid sights on, watching the slowing of his rising tummy and then suddenly everything stilled as he just finally stopped living. His body was left twitching, nerves beating on but life gone. The lights of his eyes blew out, going out like a lightbulb that flickered out of reality whenever you tried to switch it on but it could no longer light. You never wanted to experience that again. You couldn't _ever_ face that again. 

In your extreme emotional turmoil and grief, you just ran. You ran so far, but you couldn't get away. Your father had yelled after you, your friends had reached out for you, but nobody was able to follow after you once you had sprinted off into the forest. It was three in the morning and everything was pitch black outside. They weren't as agile as you were in the dark, especially not in these woods. You knew them like the back of your hand. Karl's body had been clutched into your hold as the warmth drained from him and he finally stiffened, but you continued on. You hoped this night would never end, you didn't want to face reality right now. Not like anything felt real, anyway. 

You've made a lot of mistakes, things you can't reverse. The forest stretched on and the night sky seemed to twinkle endlessly. What are you supposed to do? This was way too hard to deal with, why did you have to deal with this anyway? It wasn't fair. Fuck, life wasn't fair. His white fur tickled your nose as you sobbed into the body cradled in your arms, trying to make some sort of sense of this.

You weren't really given the chance to make any sense of this situation as you lay on the ground and stared at the ceiling of the earth and settled into nothingness, then there was noise. A rumble, hardly noticeable until the ground trembled beneath you and suddenly you heard it. Tires screech and then there's two suns, blinding you and washing warmth over you. It was nice, this felt nice. Things would be easier if it happened this way.

Karl, here you come.

* * *

_Screech, shhh, reeow-_

The car had flown so closely past you, the tires almost crushing your extended fingers as the vehicle curved around you and narrowly missed you. It jolted, almost flipping over on its side before its stabilizers kicked in and suddenly the vehicle bounced back down onto four wheels. The engine idled before cranking off, the silence was absolutely unbearable now that you were finally back to your own thoughts. The car didn't kill you, you weren't dead. What a fucking shame. This would have been easier to deal with that way because then you wouldn't have to deal with it at all. 

A door was slammed nearly off of its hinges and a screechy, higher-pitched voice began furiously yelling in your direction; but, you didn't care. You could only hold onto Karl's tiny, skeletal body. 

"YOU FOOLISH, STUPID, PITIFUL, DUMB, IDIOTIC, CHAOTIC HUMAN!" they spoke. "YOU COULD HAVE NOT ONLY KILLED YOURSELF, BUT MY BROTHER, OUR LAZY-BONES OF A FRIEND, AND MYSELF. PLUS, YOU WOULD HAVE HORRIBLY DENTED THE FRONT OF MY CAR! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?" The person stepped out from behind the slick, black sportscar, scowling down at you. They were a monster, a skeleton more specifically. 

"AND NOW, YOU LAY THERE ON THE GROUND UNMOVING AND UNSUSPECTINGLY," they continued," ALMOST AS IF YOU ARE TRYING TO TRICK US INTO BELIEVING THAT YOU ARE MERELY HARMLESS BUT THEN WHY WOULD HAVE PULLED SUCH A SUICIDAL STUNT? CLEARLY, YOU MEAN BUSINESS. WHY DO YOU WISH TO HARM US? WHATEVER THE REASON MAY BE, WARY THAT I WILL ERADICATE YOU." They had stalked all the way towards you and you had heard two other car doors open and slam closed, their footsteps stumbling for the skeleton now standing above you. Their sockets were slit, glaring straight through your soul and you noticed that there were three cracks down their right eye. They were speaking to you but you weren't hearing them, just staring into the tiny, red dots that you saw glowing within those black abysses set into their skull. 

"AS YOUR SUPERIOR, I DEMAND THAT YOU TELL ME!" they stomped their foot angrily, two other skeletons flanking both of their sides as they grinned down at you drunkenly. "I AM THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE EDGE, HEAD OF THE ROYAL GUARD UNDER THE GREAT KING ASGORE. YOUR RESPONSE IS - BY MONSTER LAW - REQUIRED." His friends just giggled before the one who was almost as tall as he slung an arm around his shoulder, swaying with him unsteadily as the angry one released an offended noise. 

"edge, calm down man," the skeleton who tried placating him wore a baggy, orange hoodie and a cigarette dangled from the corner of his mouth. "maybe they were just pulling a little goof on ya." You blinked up at this skeleton, listening to the voice that was as smooth as honey flow from between his teeth. His eyes were half-lidded as he panted out a 'nyeh, heh, heh' and shuffled his feet, Edge's sockets dilated and his scowl deepened into a frown. A smaller skeleton wrapped an arm around Edge's midriff, pulling him flush and snickering. 

"yeah, bro. stretch is right," a gold tooth glittered on the left side of his maw, twinkling underneath the starlight. his voice was gruff and deep, almost as if he had taken one too many shots of tequila," ya seriously should've come with us tonight ta loosen up. then ya wouldn't be so _edgy._ " This smaller skeleton shimmied his shoulders, giving - who you assumed was his brother - the old razzle-dazzle. Edge inhaled sharply, his frown pulling down the rest of his face and stretching out his cheekbones so far that they appeared sharper as he growled out. 

"BROTHER, THIS IS YOUR SECOND STRIKE TONIGHT," he hissed out loudly. "DON'T THINK I FORGOT ABOUT YOU HIJACKING THE KARAOKE MACHINE AND SINGING _'WELCOME TO THE BLACK PARADE'_ AND DEDICATING IT TO ME. REMEMBER, RED - THREE STRIKES AND YOU'RE **OUT.** " Red's smile died down and a few red-hued, barely visible beads of sweat trickled down both of his temples. Stretch giggled into his hoodie, lazily offering you two thumbs-up as he swung away haphazardly from Edge. 

"of course, boss. wouldn't dream of it," Red gulped and some part in your brain wondered how a skeleton could swallow, but you kept quiet. "i'll be good, promise." 

"THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT," Edge finally returned his attention back to you. "NOW, HUMAN. YOU HAVE YET TO ANSWER ME AND MY PATIENCE IS WEARING THIN DUE TO THE DRUNKEN COMPANY, SO I SUGGEST YOU TELL ME OR I WILL HAVE TO START AN ENCOUNTER..." He trailed off, eye-lights roaming over your figure before he huffed angrily. 

"AND AS MUCH AS THIS PAINS ME TO DO SO, I MUST ADMIT THAT I FIND YOUR SENSE OF FASHION," he paused and searched for the correct word," PASSABLE. THAT MEANS YOU'VE INSPIRED ME TO SPARE YOU AN ENCOUNTER, BUT ONLY IF YOU RESPOND TO ME RIGHT AFTER I FINISH THIS SENTENCE." His tone was threatening and had the circumstances been different, you would have felt tingles trail up your spine in fear; however, even though your emotions were currently high-strung, you felt too drained to feel in danger. Edge was being kind to you and something told you that he didn't innately act like this, so he must feel pity for you. Disgust made bile rise in the back of your throat at that conclusion and your opened your mouth, your sticky saliva popping as you spoke. 

"Excuse me?" you croaked out, voice strained from the gross bawling. Some part of you understood that Edge was more than likely upset that you had endangered four different lives a few moments ago, but another part of you demanded to know just who the hell he thought he was. 

"I THINK YOUR SCARF LOOKS NICE," Edge haughtily said, shoulders tensing as he looked away with a crimson blush glowing across the bridge of his nasal cavity. "WHITE ISN'T NECESSARILY MY COLOR, BUT IT SUITS YOU." Scarf? What scarf - ! Then it clicked. No way. He just did not. The bile you felt earlier was replaced with nothing but pure, raw rage as you gasped up at him and you felt word after word pile up in your head to scream at this absolute jerk for his inconsideration. Your voice got caught in your throat and you choked on your insults as your resolve suddenly crumbled and weeping tore through you once more. Edge took a slight step back in confusion and his face scrunched up, but it quickly disappeared as he regained his composure and looked at his brother. 

"WHAT JUST HAPPENED?" he questioned and Red gave you a once-over before wincing. 

"boss, i think that's their cat." 

"BUT IT'S DEAD." 

"i think that's why they're crying." You had once again tuned them out and you tightened your hold on the lifeless charge in your arms. Stretch muttered out an 'oh, shit' and Edge accidentally tensed up and strangled out a 'nyeh!?' A moment of silence was shared between the three skeletons as more tears poured out and your breathing quickened, close to hyperventilating. Could this night literally get any worse? This felt just like listening to your other cat stalk into the room and snatch up Karl's food as he passed over, zoning in on smacking lips and clinking teeth while Karl reached out for nothing and swiped his paws aimlessly in the air before curling his claws into the hand that held his face. Yeah, Karl wasn't going to eat it, but did she have to be as insensitive as this damn skeleton? 

"UH," Edge seemed to realize his insensitivity and his face squinked up like he was contemplating something," GOD, THIS IS SO HUMILATINGLY AWKWARD AND I HATE IT. I, ER, DIDN'T REALIZE THAT YOUR CAT WASN'T A PART OF YOUR WARDROBE AND NOT ONLY DO I FEEL SOULLESS, BUT DENSE." When you didn't respond and your crying only increased, Edge sighed out miserably before he squats down beside you. 

"AS AN APOLOGY, LET ME HELP YOU," he held out his hand and looked anywhere but at you. "I USUALLY AM NOT SO CHARITABLE, SO DON'T BE EXPECTING THIS OFTEN, HUMAN." His chest puffed out indignantly and you rubbed a hand across your eyes to wipe away the tears, a grimace set into your face. Everything inside of you screamed to not accept his help and spit at his feet for that horrible comment earlier, but your heart was so swamped up with emotion and you were so numbingly tired that you caved. Limply taking his hand, Edge pulled you up and you hobbled a little into him as a few more sobs raked through your body. This seemed to embarrass him just a tad bit, but he allowed you to cry into his chest. 

"YES, YES," he said, "CRY ALL YOU NEED, TINY HUMAN. WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR CAT SOON THOUGH, SO TRY TO PULL IT TOGETHER THE BEST YOU CAN. WE HAVE TO GET BACK TO THE OTHERS BEFORE DAYBREAK, PREFERABLY." His words seemed harsh and kind of punitive, but you did at least appreciate that he was trying. You let a few more tears escape and you stepped back, nodding at him. 

"Okay, I-," you paused and sniffled," I think I'm ready." With that, Edge steadied you as he guided you back to your car, gingerly placing his hand on the area of your back between your shoulder blades. His touch was delicate and you assumed that he was afraid you would collapse again any minute, the thought making you whimper as you heard his drunken friends bumble on behind him. 

"whaddya plan on doin', edge?" Stretch yawned out, opening the front passenger door and flopping his body inside. "ya know classic's not gonna like this." Edge set you down in the seat behind Stretch, gently closing the door while Red blindly tumbled in and flashed you a dazzling smirk. 

"didn't think you were the type to help humans in distress," he winked at you and another part of you also wondered how his bone was so opposable. "but here ya are, taking one back to the house with their dead cat." You knew that they were both wasted, but Red's words cut through you because part of your soul fought back with the idea that Karl was really gone for forever. A sigh left you and you tilted your head to look out the window, listening to the engine crank to life and hum its way back onto the path. This might seem like a bad idea to accept a stranger's help and get in a vehicle with some drunk people, but Edge was right. Karl needed to be buried and if he was offering, then you weren't going to say no. Nothing in you could muster the strength to ask them to drive you home, you couldn't face your dad and friends right now. Maybe never, but you know that's not realistic. 

"I'M JUST GOING TO HELP THEM BURY THE CAT, YOU NIMWITS," Edge spat out. "NOTHING MORE OR NOTHING LESS, SO KEEP THOSE SKULLS OF YOURS ON RIGHT." This shut the other two up and they quickly dozed off as the car started its journey back home. 

The car smoothly drove for a solid ten minutes, the only sounds inside was Stretch snoring in the front seat and Red mumbling into your leg as he lay splayed across the backseat and onto your lap. He had forgotten to buckle his seatbelt and consequently fell down whenever the car actually drove away from the spot you almost died at, but you didn't have the heart to push him off. Red was warm and as much as you would love to discuss the logistics on how a skeleton could radiate heat, it kept you from focusing on the cold and dead weight in your arms. You patiently waited. 

You didn't wait long, however. Eventually, the car slowed to a stop in front of a rather large garage, the yellow headlights reflecting off of the white-painted aluminum door. Edge killed the engine, snapping at the other two and scaring them awake. Red nearly smacked you upside the jaw whenever he shot up and scanned his surroundings in a panic, releasing a terse sigh and relaxing his tensed shoulders. Stretch all but fell out of the vehicle, leaning on the door to close it and trying to catch a snooze on the side of the car before Edge yanked him off with a rough tug on the collar of his hoodie. The least you could do was help Red out of the car with your free arm, just to make sure that Edge didn't lose his cool on him, too. Red nodded at you but quickly cringed back away from you whenever he caught glimpse of Edge's soul-shattering stare. 

The two drunken skeletons moved for the front of the - for lack of better terms - mansion, but Edge stepped in between their path and pointed at the shed. 

"OH, NO," he stated. "I AM _NOT_ DOING THIS ALONE. YOU TWO ARE GOING TO WALTZ ON IN THERE AND GRAB A COUPLE OF SHOVELS." 

"whaddya want us to do with them shovels?" drawled out Stretch, one of his sockets shut and the other's eye light lazily trailing towards Edge, the house, and then, finally, at you. 

"YOU'RE GOING TO BEGIN DIGGING A HOLE WHILE I HELP THE HUMAN FIND A BOX TO PUT THEIR CAT IN," Edge commanded, grasping hold of one of your shoulders and steering you up towards their home. "AND YOU BETTER NOT COMPLAIN ABOUT IT, SEEING HOW TORE UP THEY ARE. YOU'RE NOT MOOCHING YOUR WAY OUT OF THIS ONE." 

"boss, c'mon," Red whined, "we're absolutely wasted. ya think we're gonna be able to dig a decent enough hole for this?" 

"NO," Edge mused out thoughtfully," BUT YOU ARE GOING TO DO SUCH A BAD JOB THAT I'LL BE HAVING ROAST MATERIAL FOR THE NEXT WEEK; HOWEVER, AT LEAST YOU WILL HAVE SOMETHING STARTED FOR WHENEVER I HAVE TO DO ALL OF THE WORK." He ended the argument hardly before it even began, marching you up to the gallant, roofed front porch while Red and Stretch grumbled out tiredly and shambled for the garage. Edge pulled out his keys, the jangling almost covering up the rattling sounds of the garage door being lifted as he unlocked the door to the mansion. You were gingerly pushed in, Edge more than likely guiding you out of fear and annoyance that you'll crumple over again in a pile of tears and white cat fur. An automatic hall light flickered on, triggered as the two of you pressed on further into the home. Had you been not so sad and tired, you might have taken a moment to appreciate just how beautiful everything looked even in the nighttime. But you were sad and tired, so your lips stayed sealed as Edge led you up a flight of steps and turned you to the right. 

There was a solid black door and a shimmery, golden plaque that simply wrote 'Edge' in a very familiar font, but you couldn't recognize it off the bat and soon after gave up trying to put a name to it. Edge reached forward and twisted the handle, pushing it open with one of his fancy, red boots and brought you inside. The room was absolutely spotless, not a single speck of dust in sight and everything was crisp and pressed neatly. With a small smile tugging at the corners of your lips, you realized the room must have reflected his personality - or, at least, the few traits you have seen. 

Once inside, Edge carefully shut his door, having the knob twisted so that whenever he pressed back into place that it would soundlessly shut. After that, Edge pivoted on his heel and stalked for what you assumed was his closet. The door was ripped open and he quickly scrounged through it, tossing out a few outfits that looked as if they had been ripped up and stained with something dark onto the ground behind him. A few crates were pushed out and, finally, Edge turned around and presented a shoebox to you. 

"WE CAN PUT HIM IN THIS," he punctuated his sentence by stepping towards you, but you took a hasty step back. Edge, confused by your action, stepped forward again; however, you only responded by stepping back again. "HUMAN, STOP THAT. WE NEED TO BURY HIM SOON AND IF YOU WANT MY HELP, WE HAVE TO DO IT BEFORE DAWN WHEN THE OTHERS WILL BE AWAKE." You shook your head rapidly, frowning up at him and shuffling from foot to foot, refusing to meet his eyes. 

"That," you started, you voice still very unsteady and raspy," that box isn't big enough. He's, um, he's gone stiff." 

"AND WHY SHOULD THAT POSSIBLY STOP US?" Edge genuinely must not realize what that meant, as monsters dusted away whenever they died and really didn't have to worry about the aftermath of burying a body. Many monsters had been horrified whenever they realized one would have to break the body if it went stiff, especially if one wants to position it in any specific way. Edge must not have learned this yet. 

A part of your soul clenched up at the idea of having to snap Karl's body in any way just to get him inside of a box and Edge seemed to wince away from you at that, but you pulled yourself together to explain.

"I don't want to break him," you meekly stated. "I loved him so much, I don't want to have to hear that." Edge's faint eye-lights trailed over your figure, noting that you were exposed and weak and so open to an attack by an enemy. He released a sigh before he tossed the shoebox in his hands away, reaching back inside of his closet and continuing to ruffle through his belongings. A few heavy moments passed and you feared that you might have to leave the room so Edge could break Karl to fit inside of the box and tears prickled at your eyes, but Edge almost jumped around and held out a very small chest. 

"SINCE I FEEL THIS WILL BE THE ONLY WAY TO PLACATE YOU FOR NOW," Edge started," I EMPTIED ONE OF MY CHESTS THAT HAD A BUNCH OF SCARVES IN THEM. DON'T WORRY, HUMAN. THOUGH I WILL FOREVER HOLD THIS OVER YOUR HEAD FOR A FAVOR IN THE FUTURE." His charity, though said in the wrong light, was definitely in the right place. Edge stood by his bedside, dropping the chest onto the bed and tilting his body towards you expectantly. A gasping pant tore through you but you came forth and delicately placed Karl's body inside, trying extremely hard to not look at his expression and moving back. The chest, luckily, was a perfect fit for his body. It was squared and tall enough that none of Karl's pretty fur snagged on the lid whenever Edge carefully shut the lid with an inaudible thud. 

You leaned down to swoop the box up, but Edge beat you to it and easily tucked it underneath his right arm. How fast and calculated his movements were raised a few shocked blinks out of you and some part of you screamed that he had been _eager_ to help you. Edge seemed to have realized exactly what he had just done and quickly puffed out his chest and turned his skull away from you, desperately trying to hide the blush that practically pranced all over his features. You finally allowed a smile to escape you and you unconsciously linked your arm together with Edge's free side, your gait slow as you headed back down the stairs. Though the automatic light had flicked to life, its dim glow was hardly needed due to the vibrancy of the achromatic blush that refused to die down from Edge's face. 

When the two of you finally arrived back outside, Edge's sharp hearing picked up on Stretch and Edge's drunken singing and directed you further into the forest. It took you about three minutes away from their mansion, but you figured that it was a respectable distance considering that they didn't even know the cat. Edge seemed to be thinking the same thing, frustratedly groaning but not breaking the hold between you. Red noticed that you had returned, wiggling his eyebrows at you as he flicked a pile of dirt to his right. Stretch continued on singing what you thought was Madonna, but the lyrics didn't quite match up as he scooped up some dirt and dropped it to his left. 

"heya, boss," Red slurred out," didn't think ya'd actually come back for us." 

"OF COURSE, I WAS GOING TO COME BACK FOR YOU," Edge nearly yelled. "DID YOU THINK I WAS JUST GOING TO LET A HUMAN STAY WITH THEIR DEAD CAT IN OUR LIVING ROOM AND THEN HAVE THAT CREAMPUFF ALL OVER US TOMORROW?" Stretch giggled at the nickname, so it must not have been a nice one due to the way he stopped shoveling just to bend over slightly and slap his knee wheezing. 

"yeah, yeah, okay," Red murmured," that also means ya've gotta take the doll home." Edge froze up and you were pretty sure there had been a record scratch in the background, almost dropping the chest under his arm before he shook himself out of it and shut his eyes. 

"WE SHALL CROSS THAT BRIDGE WHENEVER WE GET TO IT, BROTHER," Edge said as he finally removed his arm from your gentle hold and stepped forward to inspect what had already been done. "WOW, YOU DIDN'T DO TOO BAD OF A JOB, BUT GIVE ME THAT SHOVEL, STRETCH. WE HAVE AN HOUR AND A HALF UNTIL THE SUN RISES AND I'M NOT HAVING YOU BLOW OUR COVERS JUST BECAUSE YOU THINK THAT HANDLE IS A MICROPHONE." 

Snatching the shovel from Stretch, Edge thrust the chest into your arms and moved forward towards the already quite sizeable hole. He stabbed the point into the ground and wiggled it around, stomping on it with the heel of his boot before tossing up the dirt and dumping it into the pile. Red helped a bit, his shovelfuls of dirt not as immense as Edge's, but the help seemed appreciated. 

Once the duo had dug fairly deeply into the ground, a good few feet in, Red dropped the shovel and almost face-planted into the ground. Edge, cooler and vain, forked his shovel into the ground and twisted his upper body around to look at you. He gestured for the hole and you gradually inched your way over, peering down into what seemed like a dark void. You swallowed dryly and glanced up at Edge, who motioned for the chest and you forced yourself to lower it inside of the hole. A faint glow of red surrounded the box and you realized it was magic, which signaled that one of the skeletons were helping you ease him inside so that you didn't have to flat out just let go of the chest and let it slam to the ground. Expressing your gratitude and standing, Edge gave you a curt nod before he picked the shovel back up and began sealing the hole. 

"i believe in ya, boss," Red all but moaned out, slinging his arm over your shoulder," stretch and i'll comfort 'em." As soon as Red finished talking, Stretch wobbled over and wrapped his arms around your waist, still singing. 

"we'll sing her the most beautiful of music to wish him farewell," Stretch gargled out under his insistent giggling and Edge's skull popped up, worry etched into his features and ready to interrupt them but you waved his concern off. You appreciated that they were at least trying to distract you from whatever was unfolding before your very eyes and you could do with some drunken singing. 

"how's about a song to send him off to, eh?" Red suggested and jerkily glanced at Stretch from over the top of your head then back down to your eyes, " gotta clue what we should sing, dollface?" Shaking your head and shrugging your shoulders, Stretch's body waltzed along with your movements as he spoke up.

"nah, you gotta song?"

"hmm, i think i know a good one," Red hummed before clearing his throat, releasing a few hearty coughs before he shakily began, _"aaaangel of darkness, aaaangel of daaarkness - the world is in your hands-"_ You legitimately began sobbing as soon as Red started singing, finding his choice in songs oddly inappropriate at the moment but not having the heart left in you to say so. Stretch gasped as a few of your tears dripped off your chin and splattered onto the top of his skull, glaring up at Red; who had stopped singing as soon he heard your crying begin again. 

"now look what you've done," Stretch almost growled out before he sighed dramatically," i've got a better song, hunny." Removing his hold of your midriff, Stretch stood to his almost full height and wrapped an arm across your shoulders, underneath Red's arm. He didn't clear his throat like Red, since his voice had plenty of warm-up due to his loud belting out of Madonna earlier. Some nasty and torturous curiosity reared its head into your sobbing and you stopped long enough, wondering what he could possibly sing that would not be as bad as _Angel of Darkness._

 _"i'm like the ringleader, i call the shots, i call the shots!"_ Stretch sweetly sang out in his girliest voice, _"i'm like a firecracker, i make it hot when i put on a show!"_ You would have said that your heart broke in that moment, but having your cat die, almost accidentally committing suicide, meeting three skeleton monsters, and having them help you and sing Brittney Spears to you finally eviscerated any fiber within you that made you cry. God, this night was going so terribly, but at least these monsters are trying, right? 

Edge seemed to have literally blown a gasket whenever Stretch had started singing and he recognized the song, choking on his own spittle and almost toppling down into the hole as tried to regain his composure. His gaze snapped over to you, a bone brow rose questioningly, almost as if asking _'do you want me to eradicate these two fools?'_ You shook your head and offered Edge a calm smile, trying to convey that you didn't mind the horrible taste in music because they were helping you and distracting you from the chest that was slowly disappearing from sight. It wasn't another fifteen minutes before the hole was completely filled and Edge was patting the dirt to secure it into place, both Red and Stretch singing you all the way across the finish line as Edge rested the shovel over his shoulder and smugly smirked down at the pile. 

"OKAY, YOU NINNIES," Edge started, turning away from the hole and firmly clenched his hand around one of your shoulders to rip you from the debauched swaying of the other two," I'M FINISHED. THAT MEANS WE CAN GO BACK TO THE HOUSE NOW AND YOU NEED TO QUIET IT DOWN, LEST WE ACCIDENTALLY EXPOSE OURSELVES TO CREAMPUFF BY BASICALLY MOANING OUT BRITTNEY SPEARS. STARS, BLACK WOULD NEVER LET ME LIVE THAT DOWN EITHER." Red and Stretch then wrapped themselves around each other and slow danced together to the rhythm of their own singing, following after Edge, who had picked up the second shovel and rolled his eye-lights as he flounced his way out of the forest. You briskly chased after Edge and softly grabbed for his arms, seeking out any form of comfort. 

Edge's posture immediately stiffened but, once again, didn't move to peel you off, he just slowed his pace by a fraction and you felt he did that out of consideration for you. A part of you wanted to bury your head into his side and cry and never come out, but you felt like you were already overstepping and your actions might come off as offensive to a monster, so you fought to refrain from doing so. Once the four of you managed to stumble out of the woods and stood before the grand mansion, Edge brought you into the mansion through the garage, putting the shovels back where they belonged while Red and Stretch went in through the front door. 

You released Edge and stepped away, glancing down at your feet and preparing to thank him profusely before he interrupted you. 

"HUMAN, I AM PRETTY SURE I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE ABOUT TO DO AND AS MUCH AS I WOULD LOVE TO BASK IN YOUR PRAISE AT MY GLORY," he admonished," I DON'T THINK THAT IT WOULD BE VERY GOOD FOR YOU RIGHT NOW. YOUR CAT JUST DIED AND I WON'T BE THE ONE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF YOU, SO DON'T THANK ME." 

"I don't know what to say to you then," you started and found yourself cut off by Edge once more. 

"NOTHING, I WON'T HEAR IT," Edge clicked the heel of his boot to the ground as he said this, crossing his arms and looking down at you," JUST LIKE HOW I WON'T HEAR ANY DIFFERENTLY OTHER THAN YOU STAYING WITH US FOR THE REST OF THE NIGHT." It was five in the morning and you had kind of choppily ran away from home in a brash choice of poor decision making and shot nerves, so you should probably deny his request and beg that he either take you back home to where everyone was probably worried about you or - at the very least - allow you to go on your merry way. But you were absolutely dead on your feet and you didn't think you can handle walking back home, especially since walking took almost twice as long as sprinting through the forest, so you really weren't feeling up to walking another two hours. You were tired and you just wanted to curl up into a bed and fall into the deepest coma ever. 

"Honestly, I think that might just be the best thing in the world right now," you quipped back in response, the humor was gone from your voice and exhaustion seeped into your appearance. You looked drained and dark circles bagged underneath your eyes, Edge gulped nervously as he redirected his attention over the top of your head. Even though he had offered, it seemed like Edge wasn't actually expecting you to accept his invitation. 

"W-WELL, GOOD! THAT IS TOTALLY WHAT I WANTED TO HEAR," Edge raised his voice slightly at the end, mimicking the tone people take whenever they didn't know something and wanted you to believe that they did. Edge seemed to be that kind of person and it was endearing in its own way, how awkward he appeared at times and how he tried to appeal cool and calculating and in control of the situation," SO COME, LET'S GO UPSTAIRS SOON BECAUSE STRETCH'S BROTHER WILL AWAKEN IN LIKE TEN MINUTES AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE YOU SETTLED INTO A ROOM BEFORE THEN." Edge turned away from you and strut up to the small steps that lead into the house, making his way inside and waving for you to follow after him. 

You did just that, getting a brief glance of their kitchen. There were monochrome, checkered tiles decorating their floor and the most exquisite cooking appliances that both monsters and man had to offer, so you chalked it up to how stacked these skeletons must be. Before you could look for too much longer, however, Edge was ushering you back up the stairs to the second floor and scanning about the area anxiously as you went. He halted you in front of his door, telling you to 'PLEASE STAY PUT, I WANT TO GO AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE TO GET BLANKETS AND PILLOWS FOR YOU TO SLEEP IN A SPARE ROOM BEFORE BLUE WAKES UP.' 

But as soon as those words left his mouth, there was a creaking noise that rang out from another bedroom and a soft thud as somebody rolled out of bed. Edge and you shared a panicked glance as the footsteps moved away and a doorknob unlatched, signaling that the two of you were about to be caught red-handed. So, as graciously as a proud skeleton such as Edge could muster, he flailed his arms in the air before haphazardly swinging his door open and tossing the two of you inside. Once the door came to, a set of footsteps passed by as someone yawned tiredly and emitted noises like he was stretching. It felt like you were in _Final Destination_ because Edge stood as still as a statue and your breath was baited, since the feeling that if someone caught that something was amiss here, they would be bolting through the door and then you really would be screwed. 

Finally, after what was like an eternity, the person passed by and Edge calmed. You released your breath and looked up at Edge, a ginger smile playing on your lips and his shoulders tensed up uncomfortably. 

"THIS WAS DEFINITELY UNEXPECTED," he began, shifting from foot to foot, "BLUE IS AWAKE A LITTLE EARLIER THAN NORMAL, SO MAYBE ONE OF US ACCIDENTALLY AWOKE HIM AND NOW YOU HAVE TO STAY IN HERE BECAUSE I AM NOT RISKING GOING BACK OUT THERE AND BEING CAUGHT. HE'S NOT A PROBLEM, BUT THAT CREAMPUFF SURE IS. HE DOESN'T LIKE FOR US TO JUST HAVE ANYONE OVER WITHOUT PERMISSION, ESPECIALLY NOT _HUMANS_." You blinked at him and tried to swallow down your confusion: wasn't this his home as well? Did he seriously have to ask to have someone over like he was a child again? You understood monsters being wary of humans, yes. Humans were horribly racist and tended to turn their noses up at anything that was different than them, not to mention humans were the ones who imprisoned the monsters a millennia ago. But not being able to invite someone over _without permission?_ That definitely was a first. 

"Um, okay?" you hesitantly agreed," then what do you suggest we do then?" Edge refused to meet your eyes and he grumbled almost angrily, his whole body rigid. 

"YOU HAVE TO STAY IN HERE," he stated, voice low as if he didn't even want to hear the words that came out of his own mouth. "IT'S NOT LIKE YOU HAVE MUCH OF A CHOICE NOW." Though you had no reservations about it and didn't mind sleeping in here, you just wanted to know if he would make you seriously tough it out on the hard, cold floor without any blankets or pillows. 

"That doesn't bother me," you said, " but where will I be sleeping?" Edge opened his mouth to speak but was stopped whenever a lump on Edge's bed that neither of you noticed until now moved and spoke for him. 

"you can sleep up 'ere with me, sweetheart," there was a drawl to the voice and you immediately recognized it as Red. Edge seemed to realize who it was at the same time and he groaned before stomping towards his bed, ripping off the sheets that covered Red's body. Aforementioned skeleton shot the both of you a set of finger-guns and grinned sloppily, signaling that he was still completely wasted and losing touch on reality as sleep began to tug on his eye sockets. 

"SANS-," Edge started to growl out, but paused and shook his head," BROTHER, WHY ARE YOU IN MY ROOM?" There was an urgency in his timbre that you couldn't quite place, but Red ignored it before flopping over onto his back. 

"'cause it was closer than mine," he answered with a sleepy yawn," 'nd i thought ya wouldn't mind havin' a sleepover like good ol' times." Edge lifted his index finger almost as if he were about to refute Red, but caved in and released a shaky sigh. 

"OKAY, YOU CAN STAY," he turned towards you," IF YOU WISH TO NOT SLEEP ON THE FLOOR, I GUESS YOU CAN JOIN MY BROTHER HERE. I'M GOING TO CHANGE OUT OF MY WORK UNIFORM, SO I WILL RETURN SHORTLY." 

"Are you sure that it's okay with you that I sleep on your bed?" you asked incredulously, "Like, I for real don't mind, but...are you absolutely positive?" You wanted to make sure that this wasn't going to make him uncomfortable or that you overstepped your boundaries, all morals in you completely thrown out the window as he noticed how nice the bed looked or how soft the comforters felt or just how you didn't mind sinking yourself into the tar pit sheets and not resurface. 

"I SUPPOSE SO," responded Edge," SINCE MY BROTHER HAS MADE HIMSELF COMFORTABLE, THEN WE CAN SHARE THE BED. I WILL ALSO KEEP MY BROTHER'S WANDERING HANDS FROM DOING ANYTHING DRASTIC. JUST SCREAM AND HE WILL BE PUNISHED DURING TRAINING TOMORROW." You quirked a brow and your mouth involuntarily opened, taking in a breath to answer but let the words die on the tip of your tongue. You wanted to sleep. 

So you carefully sunk into the bed when Edge exited the room with a bundle of folded clothes in his arms, laying on your side and just tossing the blanket over your shoulder and snuggling into the plush pillow underneath your head. Red released a shocked gasp and mumbled 'holy cow, that worked?' but made no move to touch you, so you figured he couldn't be all that bad. Exhaustion had just about won and you were almost asleep, but the door cracked open and someone soundlessly stepped in. Peeking an eye open, you noticed Edge standing there in a full outfit of black, satin nightclothes. 

You shut your eyes as you heard Edge drop his clothes in what you assumed was a dirty-clothes hamper and then headed for the bed, climbing in beside you and drawing the blankets up to his chest. He radiated warmth and a low thrum of magic, and even though your last three brain cells told you not to do it, you scooted closer to him. Once you had tucked your head underneath his chest and Edge had stilled in fear and confusion, Red slung his arm around the both of you and a chainsaw snore ripped through him. 

Yeah, Karl had just died and you didn't have the will to necessarily go on tonight, but these skeletons made you feel safe and comforted. So with that, you breathed out and promptly fell asleep. 

It would be one hell of a morning today when you woke up, though. 


	2. alt-Serif's spilled beans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You wake up to being flung into the air, somersaulting into Edge's arms. The morning is filled with shenanigans of trying to let you shower and sneaking you out of the house before the 'Creampuff' realizes you're there. This includes, but is not limited to, fidget spinners, spilled beans, and quaint cafes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story isn't going to have as many chapters as I plan with 'bello, ciao.' I also don't plan on updating it but every few weeks! It's just supposed to be a simple story with fluff that demonstrates my headcanons on the Underfell boys.

Midday sunlight pranced throughout the room, seeping in through the slight crack in the deep maroon curtains and dousing the room ever so slightly. Edge woke up with a tickle to his nasal cavity, he snuffed and the bridge of his face twitched in response. Whatever was tickling him, however, didn’t relent. He grumbled, tilting his head up a few inches and burying his face into his plush pillows.

Though he tried forcing himself back to sleep because of his utter fatigue and exhaustion, the small amount of light in the room barred that. It felt like a dizzying sensation as he rolled his pupils around behind his closed sockets to escape the enkindling darkness and groaned into his pillow.

Edge’s body went lax and he inhaled a deep breath, only to catch a whiff of something flowery and sweet. His eyes snapped open, but quickly wrenched shut whenever the bright lights blinded him. A groan escaped his teeth and he ground his jaw in frustration, upset that he didn’t get the chance to sleep today after such a strenuous night. Yesterday, Edge had been awake since six AM, went to work only to have them ask him to work a few extras hours - which meant that instead of getting home at four in the afternoon like he usually did, he was pulling in to his driveway around one in the morning. Then! His brother just _had_ to go out drinking with Blue’s lazy-bones of a brother, Stretch. Those two, on occasion, buddied up and headed for Grillby’s to get absolutely wasted on those shiny, pretty, multi-colored cocktails that always ran up their tab by at _least_ ten bucks each drink.

Before Edge was even able to kick off his boots, Blue had casually slid in front of his path and informed him that it was Edge’s turn to pick them up. Stifling his inhumane screeching and pausing to chug a fat pot of coffee, Edge diligently sat on the far end of the couch and watched the clock tick by.

Finally, at around two-thirty in the morning, his brother sent out a text to their house’s group chat, saying ‘hey, bro, i got the best gift for ya if ya come to grillbz now.’ Intrigued and mortified, Edge stood, laced up his shoes, and drove out to retrieve his brother. By the time Edge parked and walked inside of the place, it seems as if Red had taken off his shirt and was flinging it around in the air. He flounced around on the table, shaking his hips and flaunting his left leg sensually. The microphone was ripped out of the karaoke machine and clenched in Red’s left hand, his index phalange waving to and fro teasingly. The song _Peacock_ by Katy Perry was blasting throughout the establishment, the bass of the song bouncing off of the walls and Edge almost instantly had a headache just standing in the threshold.

Stretch was cooing over Red like a desperate fangirl, nuzzling the right side of his skull into Red’s oversized, brown parka and wiggling the phalanges of his free hand to Red. Edge’s mouth fell and question after question formed in his mind, ready to spill, but Edge just shook his head and decided it was easier to _not_ ask.

Edge glanced at Grillby, who seemed to be wiping down an endless stream of cocktail glasses and the occasional wine glass. The bartender casually shrugged his shoulders, obviously indicating that this is definitely not the worst that he’s seen from the pair. When Edge approached the bar, Grillby paused, damp washrag dangling halfway out of a glass and a look of wonderment in his fiery, white eyes. He was about to apologize for the mess and offer to pay for his brother’s portion of tonight’s tab, but Edge didn’t even get the chance because right as he said the first word, Red yelped out for his brother and Edge stiffened.

He had slowly pivoted around and his eye-lights landed on his brother, who was french-girl posing with his left leg thrust into the air. Red wiggled his bone brows at his brother and rolled onto to his abdomen to clear his throat.

“‘nd this, ladies and gents, is dedicated to the most _amazing_ and _loving_ lil bro there is out there,” and Stretch dramatically flung his body to the karaoke machine and pressed in one of the keys, falling to the floor with his hand draped over his face and **actual** tears streaming down his cheekbones.

Edge was underwhelmingly appalled whenever he heard that G note of a piano and then his brother’s gruff baritone voice moaning out, _“when i was...a young boy.”_ Edge almost imploded in on himself as his brother continued singing _Welcome to the Black Parade_ , clutching his chest and reaching out longingly until the song ended. Stretch appeared by Red’s side legitimately sobbing and the two clung to one another before Edge disregarded all manners and just straight up marched up to Stretch and Red, snatched them up by their collars, and all but flung them into his car.

This didn’t seem to deter them either, they just kept on singing. Even as Edge revved his engine and growled in annoyance, they just raised their volume. So Edge had to suck it up and deal with the car ride back that was serenaded with a mix of _Funky Town_ and _Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go._ It had been a long half an hour back to the house the longer their singing went on and the more distorted the lyrics became, so much so that Edge thought he was going to lose it and just flat out crash into one of the trees.

Forming calculations and distances to solve to estimate just how strong of an impact they needed and what angle would be best to strike at, Stretch released a terrified gasp and pointed to the windshield and screamed,

“yo, edge, _**watch out!**_ ” Edge had barely managed to swerve the steering wheel in time and miss whatever animal had been staring up into their headlights with those big doe-eyes. Everything felt weightless as the vehicle nearly toppled over on itself, but managed to right itself while the three of them heaved and blankly stared at the forest that stretched on in front of them. Killing the engine and springing out of the vehicle, Edge finally lost it whenever his eye-lights landed on the human curled into a ball on the ground.

He was seething with rage, yelling at them and trying to get some straight answers out of them, but they only stared right through Edge as if they weren’t really seeing him. Then, Edge had embarrassingly mistaken their dead cat for a scarf and he thought his soul was going to shatter when they broke down crying.

This universe was very different from his own. Nothing was ‘kill or be killed.’ Maybe it was that factor that pulled on his heartstrings or maybe he had softened up during his stay here, but Edge just felt compelled to help them. He crouched down to help pull them to their feet, only to almost disintegrate whenever they stumbled into his arms and then Edge felt like he was staring in one of those sappy romance films that the _creampuff_ liked to gush over in his spare time. He looked anywhere but at the human as they cried out their feelings into his sternum and he tried to pat their back to rush the process, suddenly craving his warm bed and well-deserved sleep.

It took a hot minute, but their crying finally subdued and he was able to lead them to his car. Once he had them seated and everyone was accounted for, Edge couldn’t stop himself from glancing back at them in the rear-view mirror and the corners of his mouth pulled down into a frown at their puffy eyes and rose pink tear-stained cheeks. As much as he hated to admit it, he didn’t like how sad and pitiful it made their face look.

The car ride home was almost unbearable, but luckily Stretch’s snoring added some kind of ambiance and Edge didn’t have to solely pay attention to the human’s labored and uneven breathing. He had all but dived out of his vehicle as soon he parked it in the driveway but tried to at least retain some of his dignity and just normally stepped out. Stretch and Red tried to abandon them, but Edge was feeling particularly salty for the incident that occurred at the bar and forced those two numb-skulls to start digging a hole. A sense of satisfaction swelled in Edge’s chest whenever he watched them wobble away, then quickly shook it away whenever he realized the human was looking up at him expectantly.

Edge knew that beings without magic didn’t dust away, so they would have to put their cat inside of a box or a plastic baggy. He was tempted to head into the kitchen and pull out a trash bag, but a glance down at how lovingly they flushed the cat against their body basically stated that they would never be okay with that. Suppressing the urge to roll his eyes, Edge brought them into his room and began looking for one of his old shoeboxes. Pride pulled the corners of his mouth into a smirk whenever he turned to the human, shoebox presented in hand and almost ready to gloat until they stepped away from him.

He had been, rightfully, confused. They could put the cat in this box, so why cower away? It took a few more vain attempts before the human released a dry sob, Edge’s soul tightening as their’s screamed out in absolute agony and said they would have to break the cat if Edge wanted to get his body in there.

Oh.

Oh!

Edge had forgotten that non-magical beings also stiffened after a while. He kind of looked away, ashamed and huffed at how, once again, this was like the fourth embarrassingly awkward thing just _tonight_. Trying to recover from that, Edge turned back to his closet and saw that he didn’t have anything else to put the body in except some of his fancy chests that he used to store clothing. Well, guess he better learn to adapt to this universe and offer one of those. They better pay him back for that sometime in the future, at least!

Though he had to admit, the way their soul cried out in pure joy and relief was almost payment enough. _Almost_. Once the body was in the chest, Edge winced internally at how eagerly he had snatched it up and hoped that he could brush it off since he hadn’t meant to react that way because he really just wanted to lay down. The human had other plans, acting like a devil and enchanting him with their charm and holding him all the way down the stairs - he couldn’t believe the audacity! What was worse? Edge being generous or the blush that illuminated the entire premises?

When they stepped outside, Edge faintly picked up the drunken singing of Red and Stretch, about shaking his head in sheer disappointment but faltering when he saw the human eagerly awaiting for his guidance. It wasn’t that far of a walk for him, but the emotional weight that was stacking upon his shoulders made the chest underneath his grasp seem heavier. Silently breathing out a sigh, Edge stopped short a few feet of the hole that Stretch and Red had somehow, miraculously, produced. The human seemed to also appreciate that the hole wasn’t too sloppily done, but Edge knew that if he didn’t pick up on their slack, the four of them would probably be there until tomorrow night.

Red helped to the best of his ability, but Edge could tell that his brother also desperately needed sleep and tried too hard not to chew him out every passing second. Once the hole was deep enough, Edge motioned for the human to say their final goodbyes and let go of the chest so they all could get this horrendous night over with. He had used blue magic to help lower the chest down because he could see the human teetering on letting the box go or throwing it all to hell and jumping in just to gently let the chest go. They had thanked him, but he dismissed it and began slugging the dirt back into the hole - without Red’s help, mind you.

He had skirted on over to the human, now dangerously bordering on being overbearing and insincere instead of helpful and understanding as he brought the human into his hold and forced them to sway around with Stretch. Rolling his eye lights and quickening his pace, Edge tried hard to ignore the trio until his brother sang _Angel of Darkness_ and Stretch opera-sang _Circus._ Edge’s spine nearly disintegrated: how nightmarishly inappropriate yet fitting!

Edge would have punched the two of them straight into the stratosphere, but luckily, the human waved off his concern and those two blundering fools got to live another day. After that, uh, _experience_ , Edge finished filling the hole and informed everyone that they could go home. So he led the group home, scowling whenever Red and Stretch slow-danced inside of the mansion and disappeared from sight, leaving Edge to return the shovels of his own accord. Had he not wanted to make the creampuff suspicious, Edge would have dropped them right in front of the porch and sprinted right on into his bed, but the human looking down at their feet made him pause.

They were just so...so _sad_. Edge wouldn’t have it. He hushed their praising and offered them a place to stay for the night, knowing fully that if the creampuff _did_ find them that more than likely they would have a bad time, but this was Edge we’re talking about here. He is the master of devious plans! He’s sure he can hide them well enough. They walked back into the home together, their pupils scanning around the place in amazement, and though he would have normally relished in that and boasted about his home, Edge knew he should probably get them hidden soon.

When they reached the top of the stairs and paused in front of his room though, he hadn’t expected that they would have to hide immediately. There was movement from inside of Blue’s room and Edge froze whenever he realized one of the four of them must have awakened him, which prompted the literal seizure Edge experienced trying to fling the human and himself into the safety and comfort of his room. He spared a glance to the human and saw they mirrored his surprised look, so Edge shook his head as the human asked where they were going to be sleeping.

Red’s voice cut the two of them off and Edge wanted to screech into the air whenever he stalked towards his bed - his sanctity, his one true comfort - only to rip the covers away and reveal his brother’s dopy smirk glowing up at him. Of course, yeah. This night has totally made sense so far already, so Edge resigned and just told the human they could also sleep on the bed with his brother - who was making no attempts to leave either. He rolled his pupils and left to change, so completely done and ready to be out of these stiff work clothes and into his nice pajamas.

Edge returned, dropping his clothes onto the floor without care whenever he noticed the human and his brother mostly asleep. He meekly clambered in beside them, his mind blank and ready to at least get a few hours of sleep before lunch while he adjusted the covers and snuggled into their warmth. Edge paused whenever the human cuddled into his side and found himself freezing up, only snapping back into reality whenever his brother wrapped around the both of them and snored away blissfully.

And Red was still doing that. And the human….Oh, my stars! The human!

Edge’s eyes once again snapped open and he glanced down at your figure, squinting slightly against the sunlight. You were snuggled up into his chest because some time during the night, Edge had rolled over onto his left side and your sleeping mind snatched up that free real estate. His eye sockets went wide and his brows nearly jumped off his face in surprise and slight fear, so Edge tried wiggling his way away from you. Instead, you buried your face deeper into the blankets and you reached up for his side, but accidentally gripped his ribs.

He had to refrain from shrieking.

Luckily, the breathy, muted screech he released was enough to shake Red awake, who promptly shot upwards. Red, unfortunately, didn’t realize that he had been wrapped around your body, which meant he casually flung you up into the air and his body fell backward while you were free-flying. Red, Edge, and you released screams of anguish and time went in slow motion as Red meekly stretched his arm out for you but your body just made like a fidget spinner and harpooned straight for the bed. Edge, like the cool, calm, collected Head of the Royal Guard he was, spasmed and stabbed both of his arms out in a feeble attempt to catch you.

Surprisingly, it worked.

You landed in Edge’s arms with a quiet ‘oof,’ now fully awake and staring up at Edge. He released the world’s most relieved sigh and Red’s brows furrowed in the utmost confusion. Glancing between you and his brother.

“wait, what the fuck, boss?” Red said almost nervously, sparing a glimpse over his shoulders and scouring the room for something before looking back at Edge. “you didn’t take them back home last night?”

“SIGH, NO, I DIDN’T,” Edge responded, his eye-lights rolling as he lowered you back to the bed and let you go. “I WAS TOO EXHAUSTED LAST NIGHT TO ACTUALLY CARE TO DRIVE THEM HOME, SO I FIGURED IT WOULDN’T BE TOO MUCH OF A HASSLE TO LET THEM STAY THE NIGHT.”

“i mean, i don’t care, but you know that classic’s not gonna like this,” Red scrambled off of the bed, straightening out his red knit sweater and staring down at his bare feet.

“THAT’S WHY WE’RE NOT GOING TO LET CLASSIC KNOW,” Edge stated with a huff. “I’M GOING TO GO DOWN TO LUNCH, WITH YOU ACCOMPANYING ME, THEN WE WILL SNEAK THEM OUT TOGETHER LATER.” Red’s head jerked up and his eye-lights gave you a quick once-over before he looked back at Edge, a frown tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“so they’re just gonna stay up here? alone?” Red’s tone was slightly accusing, but Edge blamed it on the excessive amount of alcohol consumption from last night. Edge opened his mouth to respond that it would be fine if the human stayed here by themselves because if they dare touch or steal anything, he would steal their organs and beat them with their own femurs, but the human cut him off.

“Actually, if it, uh, wouldn’t be too much trouble,” you began with a slight warble to your tone,” I would really like to take a shower.” Edge had been tempted to squash your hopes, but the way you anxiously wrung your hands together and refused to meet their gazes made his heart melt. Damn this gushy stuff, he was the great and terrible Edge! But, he remembered how much their cute smile of glee that dashed across their features whenever something pleased them made him feel, halting before sighing in defeat. Curse their wizardry!

“I GUESS IT WOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM,” Edge crossed his arms and shut his eyes,” BUT THAT MEANS THAT YOU’LL HAVE TO GO IN THE BATHROOM WITH THEM, RED.” Said skeleton blinked up at Edge in fear, shuffling his feet and inching back towards the door to escape but paused when Edge slammed his foot down.

“OH, NO,” he said,” YOU HAVE TO GO IN THERE WITH THEM SO THAT THE OTHERS DON’T GET SUSPICIOUS! I’M ALWAYS DOWN FOR LUNCH ON MY DAYS OFF, SO IF I DON’T GO DOWN THERE, THEY’LL KNOW SOMETHING IS UP!!!!” Edge explained it so casually, so much so that he thought the two of them would understand what he meant, but the human just winced away slightly and his brother continued to stare at him with those huge, fear-stricken eyes.

“b-but, boss, do i really have to-”

“YES, YOU DO,” Edge finished whatever inner arguments Red had with himself, turning towards you,” IF HE TRIES SOMETHING, EITHER SCREAM OR SUFFER THROUGH IT.”

“But won’t screaming alert the people you’re trying to hide me from that I’m here?” You queried in confusion, eyebrow quirking up and Edge silently mused this question around in his head with a single hum before responding.

“YEP.” He stalked to his dresser, pulling open a drawer and snatching up some casual clothes in one deft, sweeping motion,” NOW I’M GOING TO CHANGE AND HEAD DOWNSTAIRS, SO BE CAREFUL SNEAKING AROUND, BROTHER.” Edge smirked to himself as he walked to the door, twisting the knob and opening it barely a fraction of an inch before he paused. He tried to seem casual about it as he leaned his body back to look at you with his face scrunched up, but it just made him appear really, really awkward.

“HUMAN,” you nodded at him to continue,” WHAT WAS YOUR NAME?” You stared at him for a second, an ‘oh’ escaping your lips as you blinked away the initial shock of this entire morning.

“It’s (Name),” you whispered out, almost like you were asking a question, which answered whatever curiosity Edge had. He harrumphed, the smirk that was there a few moments ago clearing up and twisting into a genuine smile with his sharp teeth twinkling, then he bobbed his head at you before ducking out of the room. The door slammed shut and Edge was gone for now.

* * *

  
Once the door was closed, you slowly glanced at Red, who mimicked your movements and the two of you mirrored your expressions - wide-eyed, lips drawn together so tightly, and cheeks flushed. You had no clue what to even say to him, words lost on the tip of your tongue due to the absurdity of the situation and last night's depressing nature numbing whatever feelings swelled in your chest. Red glanced down, not really wanting to look at your face before he cleared his throat. 

"i assume ya probably needs some clothes, yeah?" Red quizzed, head tilted ever so slightly and one of his brows quirked whenever his eye-lights couraged to look up at you again. You responded with a curt nod, observing Red stuff his hands inside of his joggers' pockets and shrink back into his shoulders. "okay, i think ya could fit into some of my things, but that means we gotta get to my room first." Red was correct, he was just a hands length taller than you, but he was much thinner than you - probably due to the fact that he was a _skeleton._

"Are you sure they'll fit?" You gestured towards your midriff," I have some _meat on my bones,_ so they might be really tight on me." You trailed off and Red's face burned furiously bright as he tried to avert his attention from you and sputter out a response. 

"they should fit, don't worry." Red tried to assure you," they're stretchy. don't like tight clothing myself." You accepted that, pivoting your leg to turn towards the door before Red clicked his teeth together. 

"come on, i'll take us to my room," Red stepped closer to you, grabbing ahold of your arm before you could continue on your path to the door. "we'll use a shortcut so that we can avoid everyone." 

"Well, how do we get there?" You didn't know how else you could sneak to his room if you didn't even leave the one you were currently in first, but Red rolled his eyes with a snort. 

"jus' close yer eyes and hold yer breath," he grumbled out and you wanted to refute, but decided it was easier to listen to his instructions. As soon as you closed your eyes though, it felt as if the world around you was spinning. The ground dropped out from underneath you and you almost opened your eyes but decided to wrench them tighter together in fear of disobeying what Red told you before everything stopped moving and there was a floor below your feet again. Breath panted out of you and you bent slightly at the waist, hands on your knees for support as you tried to calm your stomach from throwing up the nothing that was inside of it. Red released a quiet, gruff giggle and slapped you lightly on the back. 

"shoulda prepared ya better for that, but i thought ya could handle it," he stated with a shrug and a wink. "wait right here, gotta look around for some clothes i don't mind getting rid of." With that, Red shuffled for one of his dressers and squat on his haunches. He tugged on the rusted, golden metal handle and opened the drawer with a squeak and foraged inside. You stood in the same spot you appeared in, appalled at how you managed to _teleport_ into a completely different room, but you chalked it up to pure magic. It didn't take long for Red to haphazardly toss his clothes around the room until he released a mumbled 'a-ha,' and slung a few articles of clothing over his shoulder and pushed the drawer to, standing and wiping his hands on his knees. 

"i don't mind partin' with these babies, but i at least hope that you might return them one day in the future," he finished by pulling the clothes off of his shoulder and handing them out for you to take, a shy grin on his face. You graciously accepted them and gestured towards the door with a grim look on your face. 

"Please tell me that we're going to walk normally to the bathroom this time," you almost begged Red before his incessant giggling began up again. 

"nope," he pounced for you and wiggled his brows, placing his hands on your shoulders before enticingly shaking his hips," sorry, sweetheart." Red had barely given you enough time to prepare for the 'shortcut,' so whenever you were swept from reality, you choked on nothing and your lungs screamed out fearfully for air. It seemed to last for forever but was finished before you even knew it. This time, when your feet touched the ground, you about collapsed and hacked up both of your lungs, the faint taste of bile in the back of your throat as you tried to steady yourself. Red seemed to have realized his mistake and set the clothes on the lid of the toilet, reaching over so that instead of clapping you on the back, he gingerly rubbed soothing circles between your shoulder blades and shamefully looked away. 

"yikes, 'm sorry," he grumbled out," i'll get you a towel and some water, stay right here." Red disappeared from sight, so you assumed he teleported away again and you leaned back against the wall, trying to steady your breathing. Whatever ability that was, you were not at all envious. Monsters can keep their horrible teleportation abilities to themselves, please and thank you. Your lungs finally calmed and you wiped away the few tears that pooled at the edges of your eyes on your sleeve, taking a deep breath and admiring how fancy their bathroom was. The walls were a brilliant white, the tub and sink a shiny marble stone with gold accents. Wonderment etched onto your face as you trailed your sight across the bathroom, pausing when there was a towel shoved into your arms and a glass of water held in front of your face. 

Red rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet, his free arm hidden behind his back and studying the floor while waiting for you to accept his offer. You thanked him, snatching the glass of water and taking a huge swig gratefully, breathing out a sigh of relief as you chugged down the rest of the glass and set it onto the sink's counter. After you hung the towel upon the rack, you spun around to face Red, whose face seemed to be wavering in discomfort and shame. 

"So, I'm going to turn the water on now," you began quietly, hoping not to startle him too badly, but he released a frightened gasp and turned a complete one-eighty around from you, squinting his eye sockets shut and covering them with his carpals. 

"i'm not gonna look, promise!!!" he shouted it with such an urgency that you stopped dead in your tracks, taking a moment to see just how shy he was. His skull was tilted down towards the floor and he was drawn in on himself, it was so cute that you just about gushed over him. Whatever front he put up that made him look like an apathetic jerk melted under the pressure of this situation, leaving Red timid and abash. 

"That's very sweet of you," you remarked," but I was just going to ask how your shower worked." Red didn't uncover his eyes, instead just informing you the left side was cold water and the right side was hot, and that the valve on the spigot turned it from a bath to a shower. You nodded, twisting the knobs and testing the water, finding the temperature that satisfied you before you began stripping out of your clothes. You stepped inside the tub and drew the curtain, tension easing its way from your muscles at the warm water before you began scrubbing down your body. 

You planned on making this shower a long one, so you're hoping Red and Edge don't mind too much. 

* * *

Red was now standing in the corner of the bathroom, so embarrassed that he didn't even want to risk accidentally being seen as sneaking a glimpse at you. Not that he would do that, of course, but you never know what someone might accuse you of doing. His brother had texted him that he was going to wait outside underneath his window once they were finished and dressed, saying that Red should use his magic to lower you from the window so they could sneak away. Red blinked a couple of times at this, questioning how they were going to run off without being seen, but Edge just said Red must create a distraction if they happened to be noticed. 

The water shut off after that, the shower curtain opening a crack before the towel was snatched off the rack and disappeared. Silence mostly filled up the room, the only sounds being the shuffling of the towel before the curtain rings slid against the rod and you stepped out. Red busied himself with his phone, scared and suddenly antsy to hurry up and get you out of the house before the creampuff found you, texting Edge that he would try his hardest but he should know Red's not too good with being innovative in times of distress. He could hear you pulling the clothes on your body and it was only when you cleared your throat did Red venture to peek over his shoulder. 

A bright, cherry red blush stained his cheekbones before he could even begin to fight it back down because of how absolutely adorable you looked in his clothes. Red choked up and dodged into his elbow, pulling his brown parka up to hide his face in case you tried to comment about the sudden glowing redness. You were wearing a pair of black joggers with two yellow stripes down each side and one of his old yellow turtleneck sweaters; the pants seemed fine on you, if just a little loose, but the sweater was drawn tightly across your upper body - the sleeves billowy near the cuffs and baggy towards the shoulders, however. You noticed his actions, head tilting to one side as you gently tugged on the collar of the sweater to hopefully loosen it. 

"Something the matter, Red?" you pried, hanging the towel back onto the rack to let it dry. "You're looking a little hot."

"i- err, let's just get going, please, kid," he desperately attempted to change the conversation topic, hoping you would spare him and not tease him, but you seemed intent on ending his career. 

"Or maybe it's me that's hot, right?" You winked at him and struck a pose, to which Red sputtered out nonsense and released a few inhuman noises that you chuckled at, bending down to retrieve your clothes before hesitantly inching towards you and offering his hand. Red had tucked your clothes underneath his spare arm and averted his pupils from you, but you accepted his open palm and prepared yourself for him to do that god awful teleporting again. Red was so disconcerted that he teleported you two into the wrong room - thankfully one that was empty - and tried again as he screamed internally. 

When Red finally stopped in Edge's room, he ripped his arm away from you and sprinted towards the window, sliding a little and bumping into the frame. He threw open the curtains and pressed his face to the glass, spotting Edge waving at him slightly from down below and Red moved away to open it. This seemed to grab your attention because you joined Red's side, curiously peeping over Red and exaggeratedly smiling at Edge, who returned the gesture with a nod. 

"Why are you opening that window?" you interrogated, "Shouldn't we be going downstairs to leave?" 

"if we wanted to expose ourselves to classic, then yeah," he drawled out with a sinister grin, a chuckle punctuating his sentence. 

"Then what are we going to do with that window?" you were pretty sure you already knew the answer because of the look on Red's face and his devilish tone, slinking back from Red bit by bit. 

"ohh, 'm pretty sure you already know what we're gonna do," Red answered, drawing closer to you. 

"And I don't like what we're going to do, can't we try something else?" You begged, eyes darting to the window, then to the door, and back to Red's smirk. You were slightly squeamish at heights, especially if it included crawling out of one on the second story. 

"nope," Red popped the 'p' before you felt something pressing down on your chest like you had swallowed a million bricks before your body barely levitated. You tried to squirm away, but the invisible weight just tightened and you were lifted up higher. You nervously hummed out, brows furrowing as you glanced at Red. He seemed to be enjoying every moment of this. 

"Listen, I'm sorry for teasing you in the bathroom, please let's talk this over," you pleaded fruitlessly, Red's smirk stretching from metaphorical ear-to-ear and you almost flew to the window. You screeched and you tried to reach your arms out to grasp the frames, but you couldn't move any of your limbs at all. "We can negotiate, please!" 

"nah, we can't do that," Red said before you were flung out into the wide world through the window and you attempted to flail about to grab ahold of anything, but the attempts were in vain. Red felt a sense of satisfaction sneak up into his throat and he giggled like a madman, lowering you down slowly into Edge's arms to make sure you stayed safe. He was, however, thoroughly shocked whenever someone rapped their knuckles against the threshold to make their presence known. Red released a girlish shriek and accidentally dropped you, pivoting so quickly on his heel and pressing his body back against the wall beside the window. Standing in the doorway was the one person he and Edge wanted to avoid most: the creampuff, Sans. 

"hey, man," Sans began, casually sweeping his pupils around, scanning around to see if something was out of place," thought i heard some screaming in here and thought i'd check it out." When he saw that nothing was disrupted, his eyes landed on the open window and his sockets narrowed just slightly. Sans stepped forward, ready to push Red aside and Red's heart fell into the pit of his stomach. Shit! If Sans looked outside, he'd see Edge 'nyeh, heh, heh-ing' and sprinting away haphazardly with you held tightly in his arms, your screams echoing off into the forest. Then they'd both really be in for it. Red needed to create a distraction, something that would unsettle Sans so much that he would cautiously worm backward and straight into the hell he crawled out of. Okay, maybe Red was being a little rude and bitter there, but you know what I mean! 

Red's eyes darted around fearfully, sweat beading on his brow and he tried to calm himself down and think with a clear head. Instead, his mind went blank and his body froze up like a prey trying to hide from a predator and the only thing that came into his thick skull was most definitely the most embarrassing, cringe-worthy fest ever. But it was his only plan. 

So as dramatically as he could, he released a haughty sigh of anguish, swooning to the ground with the back of his hand pressed to his forehead and palm facing the ceiling. Red's face was all drawn up as he tried to portray the look of utter and pure emotion, a mosaic of disturbance, disgruntlement, and melancholy painted into his features before he bellowed out, 

"oh, _sans!_ my," he stuttered slightly to add to the illusion," my beans! you wouldn't believe it." Sans halted, blinking at Red bewilderedly. He took a step back, now uncertain as Red continued with his charade. 

"uhh, what would i not believe?" Sans spoke in low tones, glancing over Red's shoulder to indicate he still wanted to know what occurred outside, but absolutely terrified of Red at the moment. Red gasped in abhor, his mouth falling open and he slammed a hand to the side of his face before teleporting to Sans' side. He visibly jumped whenever Red appeared right beside him, but tried to brush it off and he tilted his body to indicate that he was also ready to run out the door at a moment's notice. 

"they've been spilled!" Red exclaimed woefully before he grabbed onto Sans' shoulders. Sans looked at Red in alarm, mouth opening to interject and ask what the actual hell was going on and what beans have been spilled, but Red cut him off quickly and threw all dignity out of the window before he clinked his teeth to Sans' cheek. The air was so thick and heavy in the room once Sans' eye-lights doused and Red cooed out a 'toodaloo!' to signal that he teleported away, leaving Sans to malfunction before shortcutting away from Edge's room in trepidation. 

Red reappeared in the backseat of Edge's sportscar, pulling up the hood of his parka and pulling the strings taught to hide his distressed features before screaming into the abyss. Both Edge and you spared him a look of concern, faces scrunching up while Edge started the engine. 

"BROTHER, DID SOMETHING HAPPEN?" It was an innocent question, yeah, but Red just kind of wanted to curl up and die and let his body dust away into the eternity of darkness. 

"no," Red didn't want to talk about it. 

* * *

Edge had driven the three of you past a cafe so that Red could grab a bite to eat, seeing as how he had to stand in the bathroom with you so you could shower and missed the opportunity of lunch. Once there was a plastic cup of java in your hands, Edge taking casual sips of his french vanilla, and Red greedily inhaling the few donuts and muffins from a place called Muffet's, the drive back to your home was peaceful. It wasn't at all like last night, which kind of reminded you of sitting in a jail cell waiting on death row, patient as they called your name to let you know it was time. You were grateful that the radio had been switched on this time, at least. You could handle jamming out to Ra Ra Riot's _Bad to Worse._

Then it all seemed to come crashing down again whenever you watched Edge signal and carefully turn into your driveway, your house looming down at the car expectantly. A shiver ran through you when you realized that you were probably in a heap of trouble, but relief washed over you nonetheless. You wanted to go home and run into your father's arms and cry. That sounded like it would be good right about now. Edge let the engine idle as he stepped out of the car, Red following suit and wiping crumbs off of his chin while Edge opened your door for you like a true gentleman. You graced him with a kind smile, hopping out of the vehicle and crossing your arms behind your back. Red stretched just a bit before he winked lazily at you, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"well, here ya are, sweetheart. home sweet home," he joked. You rolled your eyes at his antics before you coyly looked up at Edge. 

"YES, YOU'RE HOME NOW. I HOPE THAT YOU FEEL BETTER FROM LAST NIGHT," Edge blabbered, "I ALSO HOPE THAT YOU HAVE FORGIVEN MY BRASHNESS AND HAVE THOROUGHLY ENJOYED OUR COMPANY AND ASSISTANCE." You giggled at him before you jumped on him, wrapping your arms around his waist and giving him the biggest squeeze you could muster. You hooked your fingers around the collar of his shirt and yanked him down, smooching him on the cheek. Edge released a terrified and undignified squawk and blushed furiously, but you moved on from him and offered the favor to Red, too. Once you pressed your lips to Red's cheeks, he just let out a single 'heh' and looked down at his feet abashedly. You pulled away from them, a mischevious grin plastered on your features. 

"Thank you both so much," you began," I really, really, _really_ appreciate it." 

"IT WAS THE LEAST WE COULD DO," Edge reprimanded, still trying to recover from the flirtatious blow but managing to regain his calculating exterior. Oh, he was totally losing it on the interior though. You just released a hearty laugh before glancing at your home. 

"And it means the world to me," you murmured out. "I, um, really want to keep in touch with you guys. Do you mind if I give you my number? I kind of left my phone here, but I have mine memorized." The way you asked almost sounded like a plea like you were afraid to lose these guys, which was absolutely true. They had helped you in your time of need and you didn't want to never see them again. Red didn't mind at all, since he eagerly thrust his phone into your hands with the contacts app already pulled up. You typed your digits in, repeating this process with Edge. 

Once that was squared away, the three of you shared one last hug before you hobbled off to your home with a disheartened gait, tossing a wave over your shoulder in departing. Edge and Red stood there, making sure you made it into the safety of your home before they took their leave. So, of course, they were concerned and slightly apprehensive when you stopped and turned back to them, pausing in front of your door. Their worries melted away when you blessed them with a cheeky grin and shouted, 

"Say thanks to Stretch for me as well!" 


	3. scary skull skeletons get cute flower crowns.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Red sleeps, Red gets terrorized by Sans, you are sad, and Edge is soft boy that steals cheesecake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is some rather depressing things mentioned in this chapter, as well as something that I will be writing as a one-shot (once I get that started up, haha)! You have been warned.

There was a ceiling fan whizzing about, adding a soft hum to the otherwise quiet room and flushing a soothing breeze over the lone body splayed out across the sloppy, king-sized bed. An occasional snore sawed through Red's throat and he twitched, jerking over to the right and kicking one of his legs out. Darkness drenched the room, the ebony curtains with a lacy frill on the trills were drawn and not a single peep of sunlight could slip into the room. It was also blissfully peaceful, like drifting on a calming pool with glowing electric blue water lost in a deepening abyss.

So, imagine his surprise as the door was kicked open and the light flickered on, pulling Red from his quaint slumber. He groaned, rolling more on to his side and using his elbows to push and prop himself up. His eye sockets blinked a few times, trying to get his bearings and his crimson red pupil swirled around before it landed on his brother.

Edge stood in the threshold, somewhat nervous and bouncy on his heel, his tiny, dotted eye-lights dashing to and fro. Once he noticed his brother was alive and somewhat sentient, Edge lurched forward and slammed the door shut. He pressed forward and ungracefully flopped into the bed with his brother, who, at the moment, just kept experiencing shock after shock.

To say Red was confused would be one doozy of an understand, hell, he was rather distraught that his brother had just clambered up onto the bed with him - _willingly_. Edge hardly ever liked sitting on the same bed as him, much less _laying beside him_. His baby brother only did that whenever something bad had really upset him or left him severely distressed. Something had upset Edge, something had upset his baby brother. His mandible clenched tight and his eye light trekked up the bed with Edge, watching him settle himself in beside Red and smothering his face into the plush and soft pillows.

A quiet moan slipped out past through Red's teeth, then shut his eyes and mustered the energy to swing fully around to face his brother. Edge was wearing a pair of dark navy blue slacks and a black button-up tucked into the hem of the pants, the sleeves rolled all the way up to his elbows. Red's pupil traced back down, watching Edge numbly kicked off his shiny, inky black dress shoes one at a time. His movements were sluggish and tired, more than likely either to due a hard day at work or whatever had upset him this badly.

Red watched as his brother's form stilled and grasped for his blanket, drawing it up to the bottom of Edge's clavicles and resting it there. A brief 'thank you' murmured against the pillow and Red yawned, resting his head back down to his own pillow and accepting his gratitude.

"no problem, bro," he grumbled quietly," something the matter?" Though he would much rather go back into his depression-induced sleep, his love and care for his brother were too overpowering. Red knew that even if he ignored the elephant in the room that he wouldn't even be able to force himself back into slumber, his brother's uneven breathing would bar that.

"YES," Edge finally responded and lifted his skull from the pillow. He turned his head to the right and placed it back down, eyes half-lidded and he tiredly regarded Red. His mouth parted, sucked air through his front teeth then sighed.

"penny for your thoughts then?" Red joked, in hopes that this would ease Edge enough and it seemed to work. Edge's eye sockets opened up by just a fraction and now his scarlet eye-lights glimmered. A small smile tugged up the corners of his mouth and he offered a single chuckle.

"WELL, IT'S JUST THAT," he began and paused, going over the thoughts in his head," I'M WORRIED THAT CLASSIC'S NOT GONNA LET US SEE (NAME) IF HE FINDS OUT ABOUT THEM. YOU KNOW HOW HE IS, DON'T YOU REMEMBER WHAT HE DID THE DAY WE RETURNED THEM HOME AND WE CAME BACK? STARS, WHAT A WEIRDO." Red did remember how Sans had reacted to the two of them whenever they returned back to the mansion that day.

Classic had been waiting for them in the living room, lazily strewn across one of the three corduroy, robin-egg blue couches that were placed strategically throughout that specific area. He was draped on the one that was near the furthest corner of the room from the main entrance, able to watch the foyer and the door, while still being able to see up the staircase towards the upper levels. Whenever Classic spotted Red and Edge, his grin stretched even wider across his features, mimicking an 'ear-to-ear' smile and he gave a simple wave. Edge blinked at him in confusion, not used to this behavior and sudden interest in the two of them, but spewed out a greeting and unraveled his scarf from his neck.

Red glanced away from his brother, now distracted and face mostly covered by the article of clothing, and directly at Sans. The two of them blanked for a second, until Sans narrowed his eye sockets and made the 'I'm watching you' motion with two fingers and then slid his index phalange across his throat. Red immediately began sputtering out in fear, ready to apologize and fess up about the human, but Edge had finished untangling himself from his scarf and was now looking back at Sans. His brother turned around and shrugged his jacket off of his shoulders, which Sans took as another opportunity to silently threaten Red by subtly changing his grin into a full-blown smirk.

A shudder ran through Red just remembering it. Stars, he really wished he wouldn't have panicked and just kissed Sans to get away from the rather unfortunate encounter.

"for sure, but don't worry 'bout that," Red said," we don't bring 'em 'round the house and sans never sees 'em, so we'll be fine." He was pretty confident that Sans would never find out about you, he would make sure of it. After nearly five years of boredom in the universe and you were the first interesting thing to happen upon them in a while, Red for sure didn't want to lose this opportunity. Plus, you were, admittedly, kind of cute.

"BUT WHAT IF STRETCH SNITCHES?" Edge fretted, brow bones furrowing together and fixing Red with a concerned stare. Red rolled his eyes and shut them, burying his face into his pillow and pulling the blanket tighter to his slender body. It was still toasty warm and felt so smooth over his cracked and chipped bones, he loved it.

"stretch ain't gonna do that, he's still kind of embarrassed he sang brittany to 'em after their cat had legit just died," Red assured Edge, and this seemed to appease him for now because he snuggled deeper into the covers and wormed closer to his brother. Red released a massive yawn and blinked his eyes owlishly, meeting his brother's gaze.

"that all that's eatin' at ya?" Red queried, ready to be finished with this mushy stuff for a bit so that he could return back to napping. Edge shook his head and closed his eyes.

"NO, BLACK CALLED ME UGLY AND NOW I FEEL REALLY SELF-CONSCIOUS," ah, there's what the real problem is. Red felt a smile dance up the visible side of his face and he chuckled, wrapping an arm around his brother's waist and inching closer. He was suddenly thankful that even though his brother would never be the 'classic' Papyrus, that deep down, he was still a Papyrus at the core. That meant he would always overshare things and that they all shared this self-conscious trait that was usually hidden behind flashy actions and bold words. Like a peacock, but with social anxiety.

"aw, fuck 'im," Red garbled out, now slipping in and out of consciousness. Edge genuinely smiled at this, his smirk dropping into something looser and more loving. He scooted his skull over to his brother's pillow and rested the tip of his jawline on the top of his brother's head, a deep breath blowing out from his nasal cavity.

"THANKS,... _SANS_ ," he whispered out. Then the two of them fell asleep, bodies flushed against one another closely and dreaming this kind of lame world away, cute, childlike smiles adorning their features.

* * *

A few days later and Red stretched his arms above his head, a heavy yawn rippling across his face and he lazily clicked his teeth together a few times. Red scratched the back of his cervical spine, near the middle of his vertebrae. He stumped into the kitchen with his shoulders slumped and one of his hands tucked away into the pocket of his basketball shorts, eyes downcast as he shuffled towards the coffee pot. There was a fresh batch brewing and the delectable and sharp scent of strong coffee wafted into Red's nasal cavity. His eyes fluttered and his currant red tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth, licking his bottom row of teeth and reaching out for his favorite mug.

Red's phalanges brushed against the little, metal stand that balanced mug after mug, but his favorite one was nowhere to be seen. He arched a brow, head now angled directly towards the stand and he trailed his maroon eye-light up and down. That was definitely peculiar. It had come straight out of the wash last night and Red had demanded that no one else drinks out of this specific mug. The cute black, ceramic cup with adorable, pudgy pink cats with halos and angel-wings snuggling bottles of mustard...Why it had practically screamed out Red's name whenever he saw it at the store! Red had proudly slammed it down on the table during dinner and told the rest of the members of this house that he would carve out their metatarsals if someone dared use it.

So where was it?

His growling was cut short by someone tapping their fingers rhythmically against ceramic, humming along to a fairly familiar tune. Grief struck his features and Red trembled very lightly, just barely noticeable. Red blinked a few times in an attempt to blank his features as best as possible, but when he carefully shifted his weight to his left side and turned ever so slightly to the right, he froze in his spot.

Sans was leaning up against the doorframe, his foot drumming against the hardwood flooring and his fingers playing a mock jamboree on Red's favorite mug. He had fixed Red with a hard stare, stabbing through his body and peering right into his cracked soul. A shiver traced down Red's spine and he swallowed hard, then Sans ceased whatever noise he had previously been making and silence ensued. Red's eyes shot down to Sans' hands, which now tightly held the mug clasped between his palms and spared a glance back to the coffee machine. Did Red _really_ need coffee at this moment? But Sans didn't give Red time to bolt because a chuckle escaped him and he spoke up.

"looking for this, buddy?" Sans mused softly, clearly enjoying the look of panic that dashed across Red's features. There was a time about a few weeks ago where Sans wouldn't have acted like this, but ever since Red had kissed him, the torment had been almost nonstop. Sure, it had been a good enough distraction at the time, but it just made several alarm bells go off inside of Sans' thick skull and now he was suspicious. He knew that either Red was losing it and was genuinely interested in Sans or that Red was hiding something.

"y-yeah, i am," Red warbled out, stuffing his other hand into his shorts' pocket. Stars, he was so utterly terrified right now. Each time seemed way worse than the last, so much so that Red feared Sans would end up accidentally dusting him.

"oh, how interesting," Sans pushed himself off of the doorframe and out of the threshold, taking a step inside. "you know, red, i'm looking for something, too." In the blink of an eye, Sans had disappeared and reappeared right in front of Red's face, leering awfully close. So close that if Red wanted a repeat of chapter two, he totally could do that...or, whatever that meant. Backing up, Red's hip bumped against the marble countertop and his hands wearily fumbled and grasped the edges.

"heheh, what are you looking for?" he laughed nervously, eyes darting around Sans and over the top of his head. Red really wanted to flee right about now, but before he could teleport or bolt, Sans' phalanges flung out and wrapped around Red's wrist. He visibly gulped.

"i think you know, red," Sans whispered out, eye sockets narrowed and his eye-lights were gone. Instead, there was a whispy, blue flame flickering underneath his left, lidded eye that evanesced away the moment it blew out and away from his skull. Red's mandible dropped and his mouth was agape. Shit, he has to think of a lie, he had promised Edge that he wouldn't let Sans find out about you.

"um, well, you see," Red sputtered out, pupil rolling up and staring at the ceiling, he cleared his throat. "what it is...is..." The words faltered in his throat. Red was seriously terrible at making up lies and excuses, damn it. Wasn't this explained in chapter two? _can that voice stop, please,_ Red pinched his brows together and pursed his teeth. Sans arched a brow and gestured for Red to continue with the hand that had Red's cup dangling off of two phalanges by the handle. Oh, jeez, here we go again.

Red licked his teeth uncomfortably, looked at the ground and then met Sans' eye sockets. Guess he's just going to have to fess up. Just as his mouth opened to begin talking, his cellphone rang out throughout the otherwise quiet room. Sans and Red both blinked at one another, eye-lights trailing down to the source of the noise. With his free hand, Red reached over to his other side and awkwardly pulled his phone from his pocket. On the screen, 'some hecc i guess' with a heart emoji scrawled across the middle. Visible relief washed over Red at seeing your nickname and he yanked his other hand from Sans' grasp.

Sans openly glared at him but regarded him and stepped politely back a few steps. Red mouthed a 'sorry, super important, gotta take it' and shortcut away before Sans could intervene.

Now in the safety of his room and away from that horrifying beast named Sans, Red clicked the green accept button and pressed the phone against the side of his skull. The call was silent for a few seconds while the call connected, but there was a glitchy static and then a shuffling.

"hey, babe, thanks so much," Red began," you have no idea what you just saved me from." His tone was light-hearted and cheery, even though the looming, foreboding shadow of Sans lingered in the back of his mind. Red waited for a response but when he didn't receive one, he paused and strained his hearing. It was faint and really hard to comprehend, but Red picked up on your sniffling.

"woah, (name), what's the matter?" his quickly murmured out and plopped down onto his bed, crossing his ankle over his left patella. Then the sniffles became louder and there was unsteady breathing, almost like you were hyperventilating. Red tapped his fingers impatiently against one his femurs, very concerned but trying to stay calm. Finally, you heaved and sucked in a greedy breath of air.

"I-I'm not doing too good, Red," you whispered out breathily. It was low, like a snake slinking across the forest floor soundlessly and making Red suddenly hyperaware of his surroundings. The subtle hum of his ceiling fan, the settling of the house, the almost inaudible thumps resounding off from his vent from deep inside the ventilation. Red's heart almost stopped.

"tell me what's going on," he demanded.

"This all hurts, it really does," you stuttered out, voice shaky and the tears were present in your tone," All I am is an utter failure. I just let everyone down, I don't do anything. I'm trapped in this room, man."

Red's heart shattered.

"now, who put those thoughts in your mind, sweetheart?" he didn't really want to know. It was easy to understand, easy to relate to. How many times has Red lay flopped out eagle-spread across his bed and watched the hours tick by, connecting shapes with the little dots on his ceiling? Too many to count. Red knew this feeling well. Red knew what it felt to feel _worthless_.

"No one in particular, I just," you said," I just can't anymore. I had the chance to get away, to run away and hide from it all...but then I was ripped away from that dream and now I'm here again. I can't escape, I never _will_ be able to escape."

"baby, it doesn't have to be like that. it won't always be like this," Red softly reassured. His husky voice traveled through the phone and slithered into your eardrums and tickled all the way down to your saddened heart. You swallowed thickly, now wordless.

"But when can I break free?" You sounded so weak, so broken. Red sucked in a sharp breath, biting his tongue accidentally and his brows furrowed and arched up his brow ridge ever so slightly.

"i...i can't say for certain, but things are going to get better, okay?" Though his consolation wasn't much and there wasn't much weight to his words because, honestly, who can say for sure? But you felt the care and love that laced through his words and through your tears, the corners of your mouth tugged up by just a fraction of a centimeter. A few tears fell down your cheeks.

"I feel like that damn dog, Red, trapped and circling around a tiny cage and never being able to leave," there was a pause," I _am_ that dog." Red closed his eyes, trying to picture that the two of you were away from the darkness and the bad things in life, in this world. Away, in a faraway universe, a safer one, peaceful. Tranquil blues and purples, soothing. Little white stars, pulsing against the backdrop. Space, Outerspace. Somewhere that's he always wanted to fade away in, but now you were there. The two of you could hold hands and then everything would be _okay_.

"if that's so, then didn't you set him free?" Your breath hitched on the other end and Red knew he had said the right thing. You didn't answer him, so Red pursued, "then you, too, will be set free." There was no answer, just the usual muted rumble of background noise. Then there was a sniffle, a deep breath, and finally, a sigh.

"Okay," you said.

"okay," Red grinned. Neither of you said anything and the phone just continued to tick on but neither of you minded, just content with listening to each other's steady breathing. Though yours would sometimes skip a beat and then you would shudder out, Red closed his eyes and drifted away to your rhythm. He was pulled awake again by a careful whisper.

"Red?" your voice was exhausted, drained from emotion and kind of higher-pitched and moany. It sounded like you were sick; like your nose was stuffed up and you couldn't breathe right.

"yeah, baby?" he muttered, sleep tugging at his eyes and reminding him that Red never really was able to drink that one cup of coffee.

"Can you come over?" you tiredly asked, hesitant," I don't wanna be alone right now." He had to blink awake, rubbing his eyes and he released a groggy groan.

"'course, can't leave ya alone like this," he responded with a drawn-out yawn," ya might keel over without me." Though you were on the other side of the phone and you couldn't see him, you could practically feel the wink all the way to where you were. A quiet laugh escaped your lips and you shook your head, eyes rolling up before you fluttered them to a close.

"I just might," you said," now come on, you big ol' nerd." Red sniggered and released a snake-like giggle before he complied.

"'kay, give me like ten minutes and i'll be there," he sat up and his bed, stretching up and throwing his feet over the bed.

"And I'll be waiting," you muttered and hung up.

* * *

Your phone had been tossed over to your side, nearly hanging off the bed but luckily not falling off. Piles of fluffy pillows and thick blankets barricaded you, wrapping you up perfectly like a cocoon. It was very dark in your room, the only light being that which peeked out from underneath your royal purple curtains. The place was also silent, really silent. Not a single sound scurried in your house, no one was alive. Everybody had left for work and you were all by yourself and you couldn't even begin to talk to someone about how you were feeling.

You were laying on your side, arms reaching out before you and legs curled in. There was a wall in front of you filled with artwork, pictures, various little knick-knacks that you kept to symbolize various points in your life. You stared blankly at it, pupils tracing over each item and trying to memorize the shapes in your mind. Sometimes you would pause when one particular thing made you think about where you were during that time and what you were doing, what you were suffering. It stung just a bit, but not enough that you really felt compelled to look away.

Life hasn't ever really been easy, but it's not a thing you particularly fancy pondering over. It's been and done, gone in the past and forever lost to the throes of time. You could pull a Gatsby and you could try to row against the tide and go back, but it's useless. No point in trying. Your very own little lighthouse with its green beacon is finished, time to move forward. But you really didn't want to.

That's why you're so down right now.

Which is also why you had called Red crying, all shame thrown out and just craving someone. He had already seen you at one of your lowest points, what did it matter if he saw you at another one? Red always gave off the vibe that he would understand what you were going through, that he understood your pain. You couldn't really explain the reason why, but you weren't going to ignore your gut-feeling. So now you wait, swallowed up by the darkness of your abode and withering away.

But then there was the sound of a warble, then a pop, and then your bed shifted when extra weight was added. It creaked, bouncing up and down slightly but settling back down and you rolled yourself around to face the disruption. Red lay there, french-girl posing and his left leg sticking directly up and towards your ceiling.

"you called?" he jokingly asked in a Russian accent.

"Go back to your hellhole, you blimey freak," you cried out in response, an overly dramatic expression draped over your features and you wrenched your eyes shut in response. Red chuckled, lowering his leg and scooting closer, head on your pillow.

"maybe after you cheer up," his maroon eye-light trailed around your room, his brows furrowed. "my first suggestion: turn on a light or something, can't see anything. first time in your room, sweetheart, and i'd like to sight-see." Your mouth was shaped like an 'o' and you shuffled up, still wrapped up in one of your comforters and bumbled over towards your TV-stand. You stretched your arm out behind it, one of your hands tightly gripping the two sides of the blanket together, and plugged in the purple and orange Christmas lights lining the walls of your room. There were two separate sets of Halloween tinsel with jack-o-lanterns and tiny bats dangling off wrapped around the lights, glow in the dark skeletons in different poses were also hanging off of them, too.

When you turned back to Red, he seemed to be glancing around with curiosity and wonder in his gaze. His eyes landed on you and then they moved over to your left side, pointing with an index phalange.

"is...is that a naked skeleton figurine wrapped around a Norwegian flag?" you swiveled your head around to see what he was talking about and your eyes landed on the figure.

"Oh, yeah, forgot about him," you casually said," name's Wilfred." Red blanched.

"w-wilfred?"

"Wilfred the naked skeleton," you offered to him," his day job is interpretive dancing in the nude and his night job is streaking. It's a goal for me."

"god, i wish that's what i did for a living," Red jested at your little skeleton and you flopped back down next to him, wiggling up and snuggling close.

"Unlike me, a skeleton wearing a fleshy, meaty sack, you could actually do that," you comforted him. Red chortled and turned to lay on his back, staring up at your ceiling. He stiffened and blinked in bewilderment.

"and is that...a bara bendy the ink demon seductively posing on your ceiling?" at his question, you also rolled over onto your back and looked at the print you had commissioned as a meme and jokingly tacked up there.

"Yep," was all you could say. Honestly, there was really nothing else you _could_ say. That was some pretty horrifying imagery depicted up there. Red sucked in a breath, held it, then just released it and closed his eyes.

"all right, so, aside from those two rather... _eccentric_ things," he began," your room's pretty cool. an eclectic collection of shit ya got." Red lifted his arm, gesturing around with a wave of his hand and angling his head towards you. With a nod of acknowledgment, you also did a quick scan of your room before also closing your eyes.

"Thanks a bunches, man," you spoke," got a lot of this stuff throughout my lifetime." He hummed, resting his head on top of yours and the two of you shared a silence. Neither of you said a word but you really didn't need to, this was nice. It was exactly what you needed right now. Everything was just so peaceful that you could have probably dozed right off here and now. However, you were jolted awake whenever Red gently shook your shoulder, staring intently at you with a smirk on his face. You quirked a brow, confused and irked because you just did kind of want to fall asleep but now was invested in what Red had to say.

"bro, i've got the best idea," he said," we gotta play surgeon simulator." You blinked rapidly a few times.

"Surgeon Simulator?"

"yes."

"Red, wouldn't the whole sawing up the ribs part be upsetting for you?" you queried, worried that if the two of you played the game that he would be disturbed by some of the things that accidentally occurred during gameplay. Red quickly shook his head side to side, clearly set on playing Surgeon Simulator.

"i ain't no bitch baby, i can handle it," Red tugged you up," come on! get your laptop." Panting out an annoyed sigh, you heaved yourself off of your bed and squat beside it, reaching down underneath it and unhooked your laptop from the charger cord. The entire time you did so, you shot the deadliest glare you could possibly make towards Red, who just seemed to be smugly smirking to himself in response. Pursing your lips tightly together and clicking your tongue against your teeth, you stood - but you stood with one hell of a grudge! Red scooted over from the edge of the bed, giving you space to plop the laptop down in between the two of you. Clambering up beside him and lifting the lid of the laptop, you started it up.

"Red, sometimes, just sometimes," you wheezed out," you can be really insufferable." Red nodded at you, his smirk manifesting into the brightest smile you've ever seen. You just sighed, no longer having the steam or will to crush such beauty and child-like wonder. Plus, later you would totally give him a wedgie.

"i know," Red spoke out in a sing-song voice, his head tilting side to side while doing so," but you love me." Rolling your eyes, you quickly typed in your password and double-clicked on the Surgeon Simulator shortcut.

"Sure, keep telling yourself that," you remarked, stoic-faced and voice monotone," now which operation do you want to perform?" You scrolled over the various options, glancing at Red from the corners of your eyes. He tapped his chin in thought and hummed, musing over exactly what exactly would make him get sick the fastest.

"Let's do the heart operation," Red finally answered.

"Are you sure about that?" you checked, not really wanting to deal with a sobbing and traumatized skeleton," This one requires basically destroying the ribs."

"yeah, hey, so did you know that ribs were sexual to a skeleton?" he ignored you, a lopsided grin on his face.

"I...I don't think I wanted to know that," you said but paused," wait, sexual to a skeleton? Does that mean _other_ things are sexual to you?" There was this really awkward and tense moment of silence that lasted a little longer than what you wanted, but Red eventually quenched your thirst for knowledge with a shrug and a wink.

"you'll have to find out for yourself," you completely stopped. Did...Did Red just come on to you? Ah, well. Just another cat to add to the bag.

"So, about that heart operation," you loaded it up and pulled up the directions for the controls," I'll control the keyboard and you control the mousepad." Red blinked a couple of times and shook his head slightly, leaning in and setting two of his phalanges on the mousepad.

"cool, now let's get this bread."

* * *

Edge was hunched over his desk, drumming the tips of his phalanges against the surface and tightly gripping the pencil in his other hand. He was filling out some paperwork for his job, bookkeeping the company's latest stocks and earnings. It was insanely mindnumbing and Edge was fairly certain that drool was dripping out from in between his teeth. Edge shut his eyes and took a deep breath, hoping to wake himself up and calm his sudden spiked heartbeat. He really didn't want to be doing this. At all.

He pushed himself away from his desk, leaning back in his chair and rubbing his eyes. Stars, Edge was having a horrid time trying to keep himself awake. Edge weakly dug his hand into his pocket, fishing his phone out and unlocking it. He scrolled through his various social media accounts and let his mind turn to mush. Edge passed by a post of yours and he took a moment to read the description and study the photo, noticing that he and his brother were both in it.

The three of you had taken a bathroom selfie, you were in the center, bracing yourself on Edge's side and posing dramatically with your hand over your forehead. Red had his hands on his knees, mimicking a duck-face and perking his rear end out. Edge, himself, stood there with a deadpanning expression, arms crossed. All three of you had on flower crowns, Edge's was made of king proteas and lisianthuses and daffodils, Red's with peonies and hydrangea, and your's with sunflowers. The caption merely said, "spooky skull skeletons get cute flower crowns."

It had been punishment for Edge eating the entirety of your cheesecake with a chocolate drizzle, and though the taste had been worth it, the humiliation and shame that came along with this photo was not. Edge rolled his eyes, double-tapping the photo and liking it, but he'd never admit to anyone that he actually liked the photo! He swiped the app up, fully closing it and setting his phone down beside his paperwork. Okay, enough dilly-dallying around. Edge is actually going to finish this today instead of putting it off as he has for the past three days.

Edge, however, was unable to whenever he heard this warbling noise echo throughout his room, a poof, then an 'oof' with the sound of someone falling onto Edge's bed. Blinking once in vague surprise, Edge slowly swiveled around in his chair and looked at his brother. Red was face-planted straight into one of his frim pillows, body splayed. Red coughed a few times, meekly lifting his head up and glancing at Edge from the corners of his eye-sockets.

"hey, bro," he mumbled out, "how are you doing?" Edge sighed, tilting his head back and pursing his teeth.

"I'M DOING RATHER WELL, I GUESS," Edge responded, crossing his legs. "AND WHAT ABOUT YOU? WHAT EXACTLY ARE YOU DOING HERE? WASN'T THERE A SIGN ON MY DOOR THAT SPECIFICALLY ASKED FOR NO ONE TO BOTHER ME? I'M DOING SOME REALLY BUSY PAPERWORK, SANS." Red nodded his head along with Edge's words like he was listening, but he just sat up criss-cross-apple-sauce and held both of his hands out flat.

"cool story, paps, but like listen," Red talked over Edge, sort of interrupting him near the end of his sentence," so i went on over to (name)'s house 'cause they weren't feeling too hot, right? then i decided it would be a brilliant idea to play surgeon simulator and then well, i saw ribs, then - boom! - turned on then mortified after i watched 'em smash them open with this giant hammer. you should've seen the laser, man." The only thing Edge could do was breathe.

"WELL, I MEAN, THE LASER PORTION OF THE GAME IS A TAD BIT HORRIFYING, BUT UH," Edge paused, head tilted to the side," WAIT, WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT (NAME) WAS UPSET?" His voice raised up to a shout near the end, brows furrowed together and he stood from his seat. He quickly closed the gap between his brother and him, striding on over to the bed in just a few steps with his long legs. Red looked up at him, hands trembling before he quickly buried them in his laps, holding on tightly to his tibias.

"uhhh, yeah, they were upset involving some stuff with their past and welp, i ended up cuddling and playing some surgeon simulator with 'em," Red explained, exaggeratedly blinking his eyes at Edge who was currently fuming over something.

"WH-WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY WERE UPSET AND YOU WERE ABLE TO CUDDLE WITH THEM?? FURTHERMORE, THEY CALLED YOU INSTEAD OF ME?" Edge threw his arms up into the air, prancing around angrily," HOW DARE THEY? I AM THE PERFECT PERSON TO MAKE THEM FEEL BETTER! SOB, I AM SO HURT RIGHT NOW!" Red winced away from his brother, glancing off to the side.

"well, they did tell me they had tried to contact you, but you didn't respond," Red murmured out, now staring at the ceiling. Edge snapped back around, eyes narrowed as he fixed Red down with a hard glare.

"THEY CONTACTED ME? YOU'RE LYING," Edge huffed, turning and walking towards his desk to snatch his phone up and click on his messaging app. When he clicked on your nickname ( ~~MY~~ HUMAN) and looked at the chat, he noticed that, indeed, there was a message sitting there from you. Edge blanched, feeling like a complete and total boob because he forgot that he had muted all of his chats to keep any interruptions from bothering him. He locked his phone and shoved it into his pocket, stiff when he spun back around and faced Red.

"OH, GUESS YOU WERE RIGHT," Edge said more to himself than his brother," I GUESS THAT MEANS I WILL ALSO HAVE TO GO PAY THEM A VISIT AND OFFER MY GREAT COMFORT AND LOVE SKILLS!" Red raised his hand up, index finger lifted up and mouth open to interject that Edge's idea probably wasn't the best because you had planned on falling asleep as soon as Red left but his brother didn't give him the opportunity.

"BROTHER, I WILL BE BACK WHENEVER I FEEL THAT THE HUMAN HAS BEEN PROPERLY SATIATED AND NO LONGER REQUIRES COMFORT!" Edge stated boldly, swooping across his bedroom and to his door, swinging it open and looking back at Red with a huge, dopey smirk on his face. "I GO NOW!" And with that, Edge sprinted from the room cooly and slammed the door shut behind him. Red was just left sitting there, staring, face loose and he dipped his head once. Did...Did that seriously just happen? Ah, well. He ain't going to be stopping his brother anytime soon.

* * *

You had finally fallen into a peaceful sleep, no fitful rests or horrid nightmares or weird fever dreams, just absolute, pure bliss. A content sigh slipped past your lips and you snuggled deep into your blanket, clutching your body support pillow for dear life. Everything was going well, you felt like you could stay asleep for all of eternity. Then, it all went to shit.

There was then a loud banging and some clambering noises thundering throughout the silent house. Your eyes snapped wide open and you froze up in fear, terrified that somebody had broken in. Your breathing halted and you strained your ears to listen for any sort of movement, and you picked up on some footsteps. Your heart was pounding against your ribcage and tears pricked at your eyes until...until you heard Edge's voice.

"OH, JEEZ! OH, HECK! I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!" then you heard glass breaking," OH, MAN! DID I REALLY JUST BREAK THAT? EUGH, THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE PAPYRUS SHOULDN'T HAVE TO BE DEALING WITH SUCH MUNDANE THINGS!" Breathing out relief and shutting your eyes, you mustered up the strength and cried out.

"Edge, honey! I'm in here," you called for him, hearing the movement stop before Edge began shambling towards your bedroom. The door was carefully pushed open and Edge's head appeared in the crack, poking out and searching for you. His eye-lights finally found your figure all bundled up in the blankets and he quirked a brow before stepping into the room fully.

"SO! MY BROTHER TOLD ME THAT YOU HAVE NOT BEEN FEELING WELL TODAY AND SO I, THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE EDGE!, CAME BY TO CHEER YOU UP," he stated, eyes fixed on you before he softly pushed your door shut. "SINCE I AM SO AMAZING AT DEVISING THE MOST DEVIOUS AND CUNNING PLANS, I KNEW THAT I WOULD BE ABLE TO CREATE THE BEST THING TO MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER!" He boasted, chin jutting out and chest puffing out, hands on his hips. Glancing him up and down, you couldn't help but let out a tired giggle and forced yourself to wiggle over to give him some space on the bed. Edge looked baffled, confused as to why you dare laugh at him and why you were patting the area beside you. This surfaced a few more chuckles from you and you playfully rolled your eyes and cocked a quirky smirk.

"Well, thank you very much for that, Edge," you graciously smiled up at him," so come join me and make me feel better." Though you knew you probably shouldn't have, you gave him a saucy wink and tried to hide the smirk stretching across your face at how flustered Edge became at your innuendo. He crossed his arms and stomped his feet, averting his eyes from you.

"WELL! I WILL JOIN YOU, BUT ONLY AFTER WE HAVE CHOSEN A MOVIE TO SIT AND 'NETFLIX AND CHILL' TO," Edge stalked towards your TV stand, pulling open the doors to the little cabinet underneath it and began fingering through your movie collection. He was silent for a few minutes as you observed him, staring at his crouched down figure and the way his scapulas poked out underneath his shirt. A yawn tore through you and you snuggled deeper into your blankets, trying to regain the same blissful feeling you had before Edge so rudely broke into your home. You just about considered asking him if he locked your door after he came in before he jumped right on up and spun around to look at you, a DVD case gripped tightly in his right hand.

"Ferngully?" you blinked at Edge. He nodded at you.

"YES, THIS MOVIE IS VERY COLORFUL AND FAMILY-FRIENDLY! THIS SHOULD DEFINITELY MAKE YOUR TINY PEANUT BRAIN HAPPY," you shrugged, going along with whatever Edge wanted. He grinned to himself victoriously and turned back to your old DVD player and popped the disk in. Edge grabbed the remote and carefully sat himself down beside you, reaching over and powering the TV on.

Once he finally had the movie started and playing, Edge finally relaxed back into the bed and you snatched up that opportunity to wrap your arms around his waist. You pulled him down with you and, even though he had stiffened, he wrapped one singular arm around your shoulders. The movie played out in front of the two of you, the songs happy and the art colorful and the message meaningful. You and Edge didn't really share any words, content on just laying in each other's arms and wasting the night away to a children's film.

It was nice and you felt comforted, just like you always did whenever Edge held you. Though he was sporadic and tended to be boisterous and outgoing, whenever he was still and quiet, he emitted this calming aura and presence that just seeped right into your veins and lulled you into tranquility. This would have continued like that until the movie ended...until.

_"I do believe we're destined to be soul...mates."_

_"Hit me one time. Hit me twice!~"_

Hexxus.

Edge stared at the screen in horror, mouth agape and he jabbed his index finger in the general direction of the television screen, screaming.

_"OH, MY STARS! WHY IS HE SO SEXUALLY CHARGED?"_


	4. phil collins but he's taking a swim in an alternate reality.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You get to spend time with Red at a canal, even if it wasn't necessarily willing. Edge, later, invites you to the park where there is an old classic and a swingset involved. The two brothers then visit your house; there's a heart to heart. Classic, however, is definitely not so happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can find me here:   
> \- [My Tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/sabelisajacques)  
> \--  
> Also, finally bringing this one back from the dead! I'm sorry for the long wait, but I've got the writing bug again! Spider emoji

"So, you're telling me that's _safe?"  
  
_Red nodded his head eagerly at you, grinning madly. You glanced over the side of the canal, watching the muggy green water slosh to and fro. Ever constant waves rippled against the many tides of the water, whatnot with the hundreds of people jumping in, the rowboats zooming around, and the few barges slowly pushing its way through. There was no bottom in sight and - hell! - you don't even think there's a shallow end at all. Swiveling your head around and squaring Red up, you narrowed your eyes whenever you saw him poorly trying to hide his devious smirk. Scoffing and glancing back to the canal, you backed up by a couple of steps.   
  
"No way, you're messing with me," you grimaced, brows pinching together. "There is _no_ way that I'm going in there." Huffing, crossing your arms, and spinning on your axis, you successfully looked away from Red and his crestfallen expression. Nope, there wasn't a chance that you were going to let him puppy-dog his way into this.   
  
"wha- what? i invite you to go swimmin', we come all the way out 'ere, and you don't even give it a shot!" Red exasperatedly shouted, tossing his hands into the air. Rolling your eyes and twisting your body around enough to look at him, you distastefully smacked your lips once.   
  
"Yeah, well, when you said swimming," you began," I expected that we would be going to a pool or something along those lines. Not _this!"_ You raised your voice at the end of your sentence, jabbing your index finger rudely towards the canal. Red's eye-lights trailed along your arm, followed to where you were pointing, and finally, at the water. He puffed out a noise of indignation, mouth fallen agape and met your eyes.   
  
"it ain't even that bad! water's water," he stated. Your right eye twitched and you glared at Red, fists balling up. One of your brows arched and you swallowed, feeling the anger bubble in your throat.   
  
"' _Water's water',"_ you mocked in a childish voice. "And what are we, some lovey-dovey couple from the seventies? You're like almost half a century behind there, buddy. I am not swimming in the canal." At this, Red puckered his face up into the biggest pout he could manage, eye-sockets wide and, miraculously, there were like three stars glimmering alongside his eye-lights. A pink flush had crossed his cheekbones and Red laced his phalanges together, mimicking the whine of a dog. You knew you should have turned away the moment you saw the stars but you didn't, so you fell for it. Groaning and uncrossing your arms, you dejectedly threw them back down to your sides and averted your eyes.   
  
"Oh, fine," you decided. "I'll get in the water." Red perked up, the bottoms of his eye-sockets crinkling and he genuinely smiled at you.  
  
"that's awesome," he began and started to continue, but you cut him off by holding up a hand. Red paused, words caught on the tip of his tongue and he froze.   
  
"I'll get in the water," you restated," if you get in _first."_ Red blanched, shoulders slumping and drooping in on himself. He quickly began trying to sputter out a coherent response, wringing his hands together and constantly glancing back and forth between you and the canal. Red's sputtering quickly shifted into nervous giggling and he stepped away from you, staring down at his bare feet.   
  
"well, you see, i - i don't think that's a good idea," Red tried to reason with you, but a cruel smirk dashed across your features and you moved towards him. Red noticed and his eye-lights doused, taking one singular step back. You followed, taking one singular step forward. Red lifted both of his hands out submissively, palms facing you. "okay, i can see that i think i know what you're thinkin', but sweetheart, that wouldn't be real nice of you and you wanna be nice, right?" You didn't say anything, just slinking along to Red with a devilish look on your face.   
  
"well, i can see that won't work, so," Red faltered, glanced down at his hands and snapped his fingers. "but i'm a skeleton, so i'll drown! yeah, i'll drown. _squelettes_ don't float." You clucked your tongue and shook your head, wagging your index finger side to side.   
  
"That's not going to work on me, Red," you chuckled evilly. "Edge told me that he goes swimming twice a week and uses his magic to keep him afloat. Don't even try to lie to me." Red clenched his fists shut and he shook them once, cursing. _thanks, paps, way to really save my hide.  
  
_"maybe that's what his magic can do, b-but mine, uhh, makes me sink faster, yeah!" Red waffled, hands now strung together pleadingly and he started begging. "(name), please don't do this! i'm innocent!" Ignoring and slamming both of your hands down on his shoulders, you simply closed your eyes and hummed.   
  
"Sorry, nothing personal, kid," and with that, you shoved Red so harshly that his body flung out and his legs caved underneath him. He flailed his appendages around like an inflatable-tube man, screeching while his body made like a fidget-spinner and nosedived just like a majestic dolphin into the murky water. As Red fell in slow motion into the canal, he reached one of his hands out towards you, as if asking you to please grab ahold and never let go. Instead, you just waved. Horror struck his features and then his body broke the surface of the water, splashing noisily and spraying your body with a ton of droplets. Flicking your arms and shaking them off, you leaned over the side of the canal and waited for Red's head to pop back up.   
  
It took a few seconds, but he resurfaced, coughing and spitting out water. He wheezed, flopped his arms out, and began flapping. Red cried out and kicked his legs, moving against the waves and fighting against the rhythm of the currents. You placed your hands on your knees, smiling innocently at him.   
  
"How's the water?" you jested, biting your bottom lip to stifle your laughter. Red stopped sputtering and evened out, fixing you with a hard stare as he raspberried the remaining water in his mouth out. You absolutely lost it, watching the thin rivulets spill over his skeletal lips.   
  
"ha ha ha, yeah, real funny, doll," Red grumbled, furrowing his brows and glaring. "the water's warm, case you're curious." You placed a hand over your mouth, obnoxiously guffawing into it and straightening your back. Red rolled his eye-lights at you, clearly fed up, and started dog-paddling his way over to the ladder hidden inside of the alcove of the wall of the canal's edge. He wrapped his phalanges on the top rung of the ladder, curling his body up and bobbing slightly.   
  
"Well, thanks for informing me, my good sir," you giggled, clearing your throat and glancing down at you. "See, look. You _are_ floating! I told you that you would." You plopped down on the edge, dipping your feet into the water. It was kind of chilly, but underneath the hot late summer sun, it seemed to become toastier the longer you stayed in. Red leered up at you, brow quirked.   
  
"whatever, sure, now come on in," Red demanded, shifting his eyes back to the water and frowning. "i'm in, so it's your turn." You nodded at him, humming and holding your chin in thought. Your eyes observed the baby blue sky, watching the cirrus clouds wisp about as you contemplated joining Red. Finally, after a moment, you shook your head.   
  
"Uh, no, thank you," you quipped. "I can't even see the bottom, so I think I'll sit this one out." Red gasped and grunted, turning to the water and then tracing up your legs to your face. He clicked his teeth together a couple of times and yelled.   
  
"the fuck! aw, come on," Red whined. "it's not even that deep, promise. i can touch the bottom if i stretch my leg out." Your brows perked up in surprise and you stole a glimpse at the water, then back to Red. You repositioned your legs, lifting your right one up and setting your foot onto the stone wall.   
  
"No way, really?" you mused, bending forward and staring deeply into the olive green water, squinting your eyes to hopefully see further than a few inches in. Red smirked, but coughed and covered it up, pinching his bone-brows and fixing his sights onto the ladder.   
  
"yeah," he drawled out," totally. why would i lie to you?" You scoffed in disbelief but you pushed yourself up, standing fully and sparing Red a glance.  
  
"I mean, I guess," you hesitated," but if you say so, then I'll get in." You shifted nervously from foot to foot, moved both of your arms behind your back, and held your own hands. Lifting a brow and pursing your lips, you moaned quietly in fear and stepped away from the edge. Red's face fell, afraid that he had lost, but then you nodded.   
  
"All right, watch out, I'm jumping!" You shouted and completely missed the impish grin that stretched ear-to-ear across Red's face as you squatted slightly and sprung up and into the water. As you should have expected, you just kept going and going and going and going and - wow! - there is no end in sight. You miserably scrambled under the water, opening your mouth and accidentally losing your breath. Gross tasting water filled your mouth and you coughed, but then it just snorted up into your nose and you flailed. After a few seconds, your body buoyantly drifted back up to the surface, which left you wheezing out for air.   
  
Red's cackling reverberating in your eardrums and you began slapping out, trying to hit him. You wiped the water from your eyes and you sputtered, flapping your arms about to stay afloat.   
  
"Broski! You betrayed me," you yelped," I didn't feel any sort of bottom at all!" Red continued losing it, kicking his legs out and ducking in on himself each time he laughed out. You groaned, mimicking a growl and flopping out, trying to grasp Red. He shrieked and tried to escape but you had already wrapped your arms around his torso and flushed yourself against him.   
  
"oh, really? i felt one," Red jested," or maybe you're the bottom i was talking about." He snickered and you screamed, flicking his temple and sliding around him to hold onto the rungs of the ladder. Your hands brushed against his skeletal ones and his laughter died down into the occasional chuckle. Red smiled at you and you rolled your eyes, nudging him with your shoulder.   
  
"We know who the true bottom between the two of us really is, Red," you stated, hopping up the ladder and out of the water. The moment you were on dry land, Red panted indignantly and followed your lead.   
  
"hey! shut up! i'm never telling you anything i'm into ever again!" 

* * *

  
"The only thing we have to do is jump, it's just that simple."  
  
You proudly stated, hands on your hips and grinning devilishly at Edge. In response, he cocked his head to the side and shifted his eye-lights over towards the playground a little bit away from where the two of you were currently standing. Edge looked back at you, bone-brow quirked, and teeth pursed. Then, instead of there being a moment of agreement and mocking laughter shared between the two of you, this deafening silence curtained the two of you and it happened to be strangely awkward. You uncomfortably shimmied in place, hands trembling and falling down to your sides as you averted your eyes and frowned.   
  
Earlier, Edge had shot you a message that asked if you wanted to accompany him to this really nice park on the outskirts of the nearest town. Nothing much really was going on, body all up in the third stage of a chrysalis and head buried into your pillow, drool pooling around your face. So, naturally, you agreed to come.   
  
Now, it just seemed like a bad idea. All had been fine and dandy until you suggested the brilliant idea of testing out how buoyant one meat sack and one skeleton could be if they projectile flung themselves off of the swingset to the iconic drumline in the song _'In The Air Tonight'_ by Phil Collins. You grimaced the longer Edge stayed quiet, staring you down in what looked like this mix of worry, admiration, and, last but not least, confusion.   
  
"WHILE I AM ALL FOR THE DANGEROUS STUNTS," Edge finally began, having examined your features for long enough, "WE DON'T EVEN HAVE A SET OF SPEAKERS HERE! HOW EXACTLY ARE WE SUPPOSED TO JUMP TO THAT DRUMLINE IF WE CAN'T HEAR IT? ARE WE JUST SUPPOSED TO USE OUR IMAGINATION AND JUMP WHENEVER, OR DO WE ATTEMPT A MOCK ACAPELLA?" You hummed, rubbing your chin thoughtfully.   
  
"As fun as that would be to imagine," you chuckled slightly, already hearing it inside of your head, "I brought my phone along, so we can just turn the volume up to blast and have that playing!" You exclaimed, retrieving your cell from your back-pocket, and smiled brightly. Edge glanced toward your phone and then met your gaze again, one of his bone-brows arched.   
  
"ARE YOU SURE THAT IT WON'T EXPLODE OR ANYTHING?" you blinked a couple of times, a comedic-looking frown etched into your visage.   
  
"Why would Phil Collins do that?" you queried curiously, honestly trying to figure out what exactly he was insinuating. Though your phone was definitely an older model and had obviously been naturally slowed down from usage, you're still perfectly able to play music through the speaker - why should now be any different, right? Edge scoffed, shaking his head obnoxiously, and gestured outwards and up with one of his arms.   
  
"TODAY IS VERY HOT, SO HOT THAT THERE WAS A HEAT-ADVISORY ON THE NEWS THIS MORNING," he was pointing directly at the sun, which made your eyes squint as they trailed up his arm and then your gaze averted. "WHAT I AM TRYING TO SAY IS THAT PHONES GET OVERHEATED, TOO. IF IT'S JUST SITTING THERE UNDERNEATH THE SUN _AND_ BLARING MUSIC, I'M AFRAID THAT IT MIGHT STOP FUNCTIONING." Your mouth fell into an oval shape as what Edge said registered, feeling your face flush slightly at how considerate he was being, and cupped your face in response.   
  
"Oh, wait, yeah, you're right," you said, brows furrowed.   
  
"I'M ALWAYS RIGHT!" Edge nodded, smirking victoriously. You pointedly ignored that.   
  
"Hmm, then we could probably like hide it in the shade or something?" you pondered, your line of vision trailing off toward the swingset and examining. Nothing around it had a good enough shadow and there didn't appear to be any sort of alcoves or crannies to hide it in, you noticed with a pout. Well, that definitely blows. "I don't see anything, Edge. Do you maybe have any ideas?" His eye-lights also did a brief scan of the playground and he scowled, pinching the bridge of his nasal cavity in annoyance.   
  
"NO!" he sighed, "WHICH IS KIND OF DISAPPOINTING NOW THAT YOU'VE PLANTED THAT IDEA IN MY HEAD." You agreed with him there - you really _had_ been hoping to leap off the swings as soon as the first drum pounded off. There had to be a way to play music without overworking your cell, you refused to let this idea die. Your lips pursed in thought, desperately wracking your brain to think, and you released a quiet 'a-ha!' as an idea came. Edge was giving you a questioning stare, curious as to what had suddenly sparked you back to life.   
  
"I know what to do," you turned to face him fully, fists balled in front of your chest, and continued, "I can just hold my phone while we swing!" Edge blinked, then his expression quickly morphed from surprise to doubt, and he fixed you with this strange stare.   
  
"REALLY? ARE YOU SURE THAT YOU WON'T FLING OFF BEFORE YOU EVEN START?" he started, moving his hands around to his words, "WHAT ABOUT ACCIDENTALLY CRACKING YOUR SCREEN BECAUSE YOU'RE HOLDING ON TO IT TOO TIGHTLY! BEING SQUISHED BETWEEN METAL AND A FURIOUS GRIP DEFINITELY WOULDN'T DO IT ANY FAVORS OF NOT GETTING TOO HOT, EITHER." Your eyes were following along to all of the waving and motions that Edge was making, trying to comprehend how fast he was talking. All of his points were very valid, but this was the only option that would keep it from being directly underneath the rays of sunlight.   
  
"My phone's pretty sturdy, so I think it'll be okay," you then grinned wolfishly, having pressed the home button of the device and booting up the music application, "and as for myself: I have good balance, I can manage on the swing." You pivoted around so that you could trudge through all of the woodchips and the sawdust, but Edge still looked doubtful. He was just standing there, not budging an inch. Your fingers stopped scrolling through your songs, hovering just a hair over the screen, as you cast a glance over your shoulder.   
  
"Well, are you coming?"   
  
This seemed to startle him back into existence, due to the way he jolted and shook his head. His features were contorted in a way that made him look almost aggravated, yet you could tell that it was more than likely concern. Edge rolled his head a bit, bending forward to tighten the laces on his shoes, and then stepped towards the playground.   
  
"IF YOU THINK THAT YOU'LL BE OKAY, THEN WE MIGHT AS WELL DO IT," Edge commented, brushing past you, "BUT IF YOU DIE, THEN I PROMISE YOU THAT I WILL KILL YOU TO THE RHYTHM OF _AINSI BAS LA VIDA."_ You snickered, rolling your eyes, and skipped along behind him. Edge was planted in front of the swings with just a few strides, skull angled just a fraction in your direction as he waited for you. It took a couple of more seconds longer to arrive for you than him due to the fact you were still trying to locate _In the Air Tonight,_ but he seemed patient enough.   
  
Once the two of you were standing side by side, Edge stalked for the nicer looking of the swings and graciously settled himself into the tiny seat. It curled, the metal screeching out in protest at the added weight, and you giggled at how awkward he looked all crunched up in the ride meant for children.   
  
"DON'T LAUGH! JUST SIT DOWN AND START PLAYING THE MUSIC!" he grumbled, stomping one of his feet and shaking the entire swingset as the swing holding him bounced along a few times from the momentum. You nodded your head quickly, trying to hide the wicked grin dashing up to your cheeks, and plopped down in the seat directly to his right.   
  
"All right, all right, hold on," you mumbled more to yourself than to Edge, adjusting yourself to grip the chains of the swing properly and to be able to press play on your phone. "I'm hitting play, get ready to start swinging!" Edge nodded which was your cue to start the song, so your thumb deftly jabbed for the askew triangle and your index digit pressed the sleep button on the side of the phone.   
  
The song was playing now; its melody filling the silence of the park and wafting around the two of you. Your feet kicked off the ground, pushing your body forward, as your legs stiffly extended forward so that you could slice backward smoothly. Edge followed suit, flinging further than you due to his extremely long legs, and had to curl his legs so that his shoes did scrape the ground as he went back. It was nice, just swinging back and forth with Edge with the only sound being music. You smiled softly, steadily building up a rhythm and trying to go as high as possible. From the corner of your peripherals, you noticed that Edge was doing the same thing. He was already way higher than you, but this was once again because of his height.   
  
Edge noticed you staring and narrowed his eye-sockets, leaning back further in his seat so that he basically resembled a harpoon and flew up further. How strange of a sight it was made you cackle, feeling breathless, along with out of shape the longer you kicked and tried to mimic his movements. The song was also reaching its peak, almost to the iconic drumline - which only spurred the two of to basically go even faster. You could hear the subtle thump of the set thwacking into the ground anytime Edge or you went back, making adrenaline pump into your veins in anticipation.   
  
Almost there, so close! In just a couple more lyrics, Edge and you can jump and see how far you guys can make it. There was a permanent grin plastered across your features as you leaned forward in your seat, tensing your muscles to push yourself out, and you could feel more laughter bubbling in your throat. Phil Collins' voice raised, dramatic and almost yelling, and you knew that the drumline was about to happen. But, instead of that happening, the music oddly faded and you could only look down at your phone in confusion. Edge also made a sound of indignation, wondering why the song had stopped right as the beat was about to land, until the sound of a piano riff started banging through the speakers.   
  
You screamed, which also made Edge release a yelp, and tried to move your hands enough to see who was calling. The screen was too dark to see, so you blindly swiped at your screen to answer the call and began flailing as the swing started spinning you around in a circle. Your arm twisted around the chain and pressed the phone to your ear, screaming really loudly as it kept going back and forth.   
  
" _Y E S?"_ you accidentally shouted, only getting a slight chuckle in response.   
  
"wow, didn't know that you'd be this excited to hear from me," Red's voice drawled, making you shout even more as the soles of your shoes noisily scraped against the woodchips to stop yourself.   
  
"Red!?" your voice only raised in frequency, feeling your head spin and your stomach lurch the longer the swing twirled your body around. Edge also halted, almost being yanked from his seat as his legs skidded and slid against the ground. He looked mad, literal steam evanescing from his nasal cavity.   
  
"BROTHER!" Edge screamed, you're certain you heard Red emit an 'oop', "WE WERE TRYING TO SUICIDE JUMP OFF THESE SWINGS TO PHIL COLLINS AND YOU PERFECTLY INTERRUPTED US AT THE RIGHT TIME!" You made a sound of agreement, finally stopped and feeling really dizzy. Red chuckled again, you can envision him sitting there with that smarmy look on his face as his eye-sockets crinkle and he glances up - looking at a metaphorical camera and says,   
  
_"oh lord."_

* * *

  
"So your home is more ... violent?"   
  
Red was sitting directly across from you, a pair of knitting needles chopping away at some multi-hued thread. His jacket was thrown onto the couch, so he was only wearing his normal burgundy sweater - it made him appear thinner, you noted. He nodded his head a couple of times, readjusted his legs by uncrossing them and crossing them in a different manner, and looped a few more circles in the thread.   
  
"yeah, there's a lot more fightin'," he murmured, seriously concentrated on his current task. You hummed in response, also glancing back down to your project. A pair of diligent phalanges raked through your hair, separating them into different sections while brushing out all of the knots and tangles. While Red and you were knitting a couple of scarves together, Edge simply wanted to get out of the house and joined his brother at your house. You were currently sitting in between Edge's legs, with him sitting on top of your couch for a better view of your hair.   
  
You'd be lying if you said that you didn't _occasionally_ lean back into his touch.   
  
"THIS UNIVERSE IS TAMER," Edge stated, clearing his throat. "WE'VE ONLY MET A COUPLE OTHER SETS OF SKELETONS THAT CAME FROM ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY SIMILAR TO OURS."   
  
"Ah, is that why you guys decided to come here?" you questioned, "It's a much more peaceful life?" Your head would jerk unconsciously as you tried to look back at Edge whenever you spoke, which would make him halt and correct the angle by placing both of his hands on the sides of your head to make it face forward again.   
  
"AS IF!" Edge scoffed, but didn't elaborate. One of your brows arched in confusion, wondering why exactly they would even be in this universe in the first place. You paused in your knitting, stare now fixed on Red. He noticed, stiffened a bit, and awkwardly coughed into his fist.   
  
"it was an accident," he explained, his knitting needles resting gently against his femurs, "i was trying to get all of us out of the underground, trying to save us from ... just trying to save us from being trapped, but i just ended up sending us to a completely different universe in general." Red had trailed off midsentence, which made you suspicious that he was hiding something - but you didn't call him out on it. His explanation, however, made sense. You knew that these brothers were nothing less than genius, so it wouldn't be impossible to think maybe one of them _had_ developed a way to travel into another dimension.   
  
"What about the others like you?" The needles were back into a tight hold as you began threading again, trying to follow along with the pattern the open guidebook depicted.   
  
"ALL OF US THEORIZED THAT MAYBE WE ALL PULLED THE LEVER AT THE SAME EXACT TIME," Edge responded, thumb and index digits pulling apart small locks and braiding them down the center of your skull, "SINCE WE APPEARED AT THE SAME TIME." Your brows furrowed, but you released a sound of understanding.   
  
"So maybe there was a strange anomaly that allowed all of you to travel here because all of you attempted it at the same time?" you suggested, your brain having finally comprehended that there were other universes out there, other _yous,_ and tried to piece together what could even cause such a reaction. It would have to be chance, luck even.   
  
"yeah, that was also the conclusion we came to," Red refocused on the needles again, voice far away. You briefly wondered if they missed their home, if they missed any other friends or family, if they missed being able to go by their own names. Thinking about all of this made a frown bury itself into your features, it made you sad. To be frank, you really didn't know how you would even react if you were in that same exact situation. How long had these two been able to stand it? You shuddered.   
  
"That sucks, broshinkis," you lamely apologized, not even knowing if that's something you should do or not, but you felt guilty. Edge momentarily faltered, a gentle sigh escaping him and you're pretty sure he shrugged.   
  
"DO NOT APOLOGIZE," Edge dragged out his last word, shaking his head lightly, "IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT, THERE'S NOTHING THAT CAN REALLY BE DONE TO CORRECT IT RIGHT NOW, EITHER." You quirked a brow, thoughts running wild. If there wasn't anything that could send them back to their home universe now, that didn't necessarily mean anything about the _future._  
  
"Will there ever be a way for you to return?" Though you knew that it was wrong to think this, you couldn't help the bitter taste left in your mouth at imagining your friends leaving for good. You tried to will the slight resentment away, but it lingered. You really didn't want them to leave.   
  
"yeah, maybe, no, i don't know," Red faltered, all of his thoughts coming and going and his features were all contorted, "axe and mutt honestly doesn't think there's a way to get it to work, but classic's keepin' up hope. that guy seriously wants to get rid of us." You didn't recognize any of the names, other than Classic's - you knew that was the boss of the house, the one you attempted to avoid whenever you stayed the night with them a while ago.   
  
"Axe? Mutt? Are they a set of brothers, too? Are they more like you or Edge?" you couldn't help but ask, "And what do you think about the machine? Do you really not believe it? What about that Stretch guy?"   
  
"AXE IS BROTHERS WITH SOMEONE WE NICKNAMED CROOKS; MUTT IS WITH BLACK," Edge enlightened you, to which you only nodded. Red was also bobbing his skull along with Edge's words, one of his hands waving around in a circular motion.   
  
"i honestly have zero clues about that hot garbage," Red shrugged, "and stretch's with me. we don't know if it really will work or if we're just going to be forced to slave over that machine until we die. maybe classic will give up in a decade or so - that is if we can't get it to work."   
  
"Do you want to go back?" you finally asked, realizing that you couldn't just sit on the question anymore. Your nerves were alight, jittery and anxious at their response. The two of them tensed a bit, having paused whatever they were doing, and stared at your frame. Your own gaze was averted, face feeling hot and uncomfortable at your question. Red and Edge shared a glance with one another, then looked at you again.   
  
"I WANT TO GO BACK TO HELP FREE ALL OF MY FELLOW MONSTER CITIZENS," Edge admitted, rubbing the back of his neck, "BUT I DO ENJOY PARTS OF THIS UNIVERSE, SO MAYBE BEING STUCK HERE FOREVER WOULDN'T BE ALL THAT TERRIBLE." He was probably just saying that to make you feel better, but there was a small sliver of hope that maybe they really would want to be in this universe permanently.   
  
"my bro's right," Red admitted, shifting his eye-lights away, "since this place is so much nicer, we don't really have to fight for our lives every day. we can actually act like we're family here." Your head jerked towards Red, making Edge grumble, but you couldn't help but stare at him with that comment. The only thing they really mentioned was that their universe was filled with fighting and death - _kill or be killed._ Every waking moment was spent tossing cautious and suspicious glances at everyone and everything, you couldn't rest unless you wanted it to be your end. It was a rough, tough, tag place.   
  
But that didn't explain why they couldn't act like brothers.   
  
"What? Why not?" you blurted, using a hand to gesture between the two of them, "Wasn't it very obvious that you were brothers, though?" Edge was about halfway done with braiding your hair, so much so that his phalanges almost felt like that were gently prancing around the back of your head; they seemed to speed up at that question, almost like it made him uncomfortable.   
  
"HAVING RELATIONS WAS A SIGN OF WEAKNESS," Edge said, "SO WE CONSTANTLY HAD TO ACT LIKE WE HATED ONE ANOTHER TO KEEP FROM BEING TARGETED. I HAD TO TREAT RED LIKE PROPERTY, LEST I WANTED SOMEONE TO KILL HIM." Red started fiddling with the maroon collar around his throat, the bone-shaped dog tag jangling and glinting underneath the light to prove the previous statement.   
  
"vice versa on my end," was the only thing Red said, so you assumed he really didn't want to go into too much detail. That sounded horrible, however. You couldn't imagine having to be purposefully harsh and mean to the ones you loved; which was why the brothers more than likely _did_ enjoy this universe better. Your mind wandered to the other sets of brothers like them, curious to either how much worse their universe was or what they had to suffer through there. A sour taste was left in your mouth the longer you dwelled on it, so you tried to push the thoughts out of your mind so that you could focus on the conversation - you still had one last thing to ask them.   
  
"Oh, well, I'm glad that you guys can be brothers here," they both nodded, "but I just have one last thing ..." You trailed off, unsure of how to ask this. Red quirked a bone-brow, almost done with his knitting project, and waited for your question. Nervously, you gulped, and anxiously sucked in a breath of air through your teeth.   
  
"So, do you actually like being called Red and Edge?" both of them froze, "Or would you prefer going by your real names?"   
  
"DEFINITELY NOT! I THINK THOSE NICKNAMES ARE ABSOLUTELY SILLY AND JUST FLAT OUT BORING," Edge said, fiddling with the hair-gummy around his wrist so that he could finish the braid, "THEY STEMMED FROM STUPID JOKES AND THEY STUCK! I WISH THAT WE COULD AT LEAST BE CALLED SOMETHING MORE LIKE A REAL NAME IF WE CAN'T BE CALLED _SANS_ AND _PAPYRUS."_ The gummy was twisted around your locks a few times, then Edge pulled the loose hairs at the bottom to tighten the braid up.   
  
"but ya can call us by our real names if ya wish," Red winked, blowing a flirtatious kiss as he pushed his finished scarf off his lap, "except when we're around the others." He held up the scarf, letting the ends dangle across the floor, and you whistled in amazement. It wasn't bad at all; hell, it even looked like something that you'd see in a store. The colors were a mix of autumn-themed oranges, reds, and yellows, mixed in with a shade or two of blues. You smiled widely, nodding your approval. Your scarf had been finished a few moments ago, but the colors were more multi-colored like a rainbow rather than being themed.   
  
"I'll call you by your real names, don't worry," you assured the brothers, noticing their expressions brighten at that, "and I can help you come up with some new nicknames, too!" Edge stood up, strutting a few strides to be standing directly in front of your face, and offered a hand. You accepted it, shaking your head side to side to feel the braid move along with the motions, and pulled yourself up on your feet. Red yawned, gripping onto the newly-made scarf.   
  
"oh, worm? whaddya thinkin'?" Red lazily inquired, one of his hands stuffed into his jacket's pocket.   
  
"Hmm, for you, Red, let's see," you grabbed the scarf you finished, "how does _Russet_ sound? I know it's still technically a color, but at least it sounds cool." Red's eye-lights brightened at the suggestion, and that only doubled whenever you handed your scarf out to him, and grinned happily.   
  
"heh, nice one," was said in a way that made him sound abashed, "i'll take it." _Russet_ accepted the scarf, holding his out to you - which you gladly grabbed. Russet began wrapping the scarf around his neck, even though it wasn't cold outside. It made your chest warm at the gesture.   
  
"WHAT ABOUT ME? I THINK I FINALLY DESERVE A BETTER NICKNAME THAN 'EDGE"!" Edge interjected, both of his hands on his hips, and tapped his foot impatiently. His bone-brows were furrowed, but you knew that he wasn't annoyed - just impatient.   
  
"Firstly, thanks for the braid," Edge waved one of his hand about aimlessly, but you noticed his expression shifted into something smugger, "and gimme a second to think ... Oh! How about _Blaise?_ I think it's French, but it's related to something about fire and that's perfect for someone as great as you." Edge hummed, rubbed his chin in thought, and then devilishly smirked. The edges of his eye-sockets crinkled and there was a cherry-red blush powdering his cheekbones, which meant that he was definitely digging the choice.   
  
"CORRECT! I DO THINK THAT FITS SOMEONE AS AWESOME AS I," _Blaise_ donned his jacket and shoes, grabbed from the doorknob to open it, "I CANNOT WAIT TO RUB IT IN THE OTHER'S FACES WHENEVER WE - _GASP!"_ He released a real gasp after that, which made Russet and you step forward to see what it was that startled Blaise. Outside, there was nothing - it was just nighttime. The brothers stayed at your house for a lot longer than you originally thought, but that didn't really bother you.   
  
"ah, shit, it's nighttime," Russet suddenly exaggeratedly strut forward, sweating profusely, "classic's gonna eat us."   
  
"What? Why?" you faced him, "Haven't you guys been out this last before?"   
  
"YES, WELL, WE HAVE!" Blaise shouted louder than he meant to and winced, "IT'S JUST THAT WE SAID WE WOULD BE BACK BEFORE NIGHTTIME AND NOW HE'S GOING TO WONDER WHAT WAS THE HOLDUP - ESPECIALLY SINCE WE DIDN'T EVEN MESSAGE HIM TO LET HIM KNOW THAT WE WOULD BE LATER."   
  
"Oh," that's right, Classic was the one that was super crazy about this whole universe stuff, "well, then I guess I'll see you two later!" They both nodded at you, already walking out the door, but they returned your pearly-white smile.   
  
"YES, WE WILL LET YOU KNOW WHETHER OR NOT WE DIED LATER!"   
  
"i hope the others have set up a distraction or something, ah ha haaa ..."   
  
You watched the two of them sprint away really fast, eager to be home, and couldn't help when your smile tripled. 

* * *

  
The house was oddly ominous whenever Blaise and Russet arrived; no lights on, the surrounding forest deathly still, and not a single sound. It was so silent that whenever the door was unlocked, it sounded like a gunshot, and the creaking of the hinges sounded like a banshee. Russet rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, sweating bullets, and glanced at Blaise's rigid posture. Blaise didn't meet Russet's gaze, opting instead to think about what exactly would be the best possible passage of escape whenever they stepped inside the threshold. If his brother was caught, then it seems like all would be lost.   
  
He was praying the Classic wouldn't be there waiting.   
  
Of course, whenever the brothers entered the doorway, the only light was reflected from the kitchen. It bathed only a small stream in a warm yellow light but doused everything else into an inky abyss, which made the atmosphere all the more threatening. Russet was the first one to notice that all the other sets of brothers were seated around the living room, with the Papyrus from this universe waving excitedly and flicking on the lamp nearest to him. Blaise, however, first noticed Classic.   
  
Sitting on a chair in the middle of the foyer, Classic was leaning forward on his femurs with his phalanges laced together. His features were drawn taut; he looked uncomfortable, mad, upset, ready to snap - it was hard to tell what was going on inside that head with such a guarded expression. Blaise stopped dead in his tracks, feeling his sins crawl down his spine, and swallowed thickly. No, he refused to show any sign of weakness to this creampuff. They would be fine, ... _hopefully.  
  
_"hey, guys," was the first thing he said.   
  
Russet and Blaise stiffened so quickly that it was unbelievable; yep, they were going to die. They shared a glance, trying to communicate via telepathy, before they were interrupted by someone coughing rather obnoxiously into their fist. One of the others was trying to get their attention, which worked. Their eye-lights casually slid over to Stretch, who twirled a sucker in between his teeth before he winked. Russet released a noise of confusion, not understanding what exactly that was supposed to do to help them. Blaise, however, noticed that Blue - Stretch's brother - was gesturing madly to the clock.   
  
Russet and Blaise now casually slid their eye-lights over to the clock to see what they were going on about.   
  
And then they saw it.   
  
"you guys were out pretty late," Classic's voice sliced through the tension, "no messages or anything to inform me you'd be out later. weird, huh?"   
  
The brothers knew that Classic had already been extremely suspicious of them as of late; which was warranted, they _were_ going to hang out with a human that Classic didn't even have a clue about. His fears that the secret of alternate universes and alternate versions of one's self would eventually get out was also warranted since the brothers finally confessed the truth to you, but Classic didn't need to know that right now. He didn't need to know that they were finally fed up, tired of lying, and tired of not being able to have an identity anymore without being chaperoned.   
  
Russet and Blaise shared a look again, knowing what must be done, and plastered two rictus grins across their teeth. Classic blinked once, definitely not expecting the change in expressions, and arched a bone-brow.   
  
"YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT, CLASSIC!" Blaise boldly stated, voice raised several more octaves than normal, and placed a hand on his cocked hip. Russet followed along with the act, waggling his brows before talking.   
  
"yeah, i mean, _would you look at the time?"_ he said the last end of his statement in a smarmy tone, gesturing by waving one of his arms out. Classic blinked again, leaned back in his chair with his hand now propping him up and the other dangling in between his legs.   
  
"what the - why did you _say_ it like _that?"_ Classic shrugged, looking exasperated, as he shook his head as he glanced towards the clock, "yes, look at the time. i - i, what."   
  
Classic snapped his head back around to look at the clock, mouth slightly agape. There, placed so nicely in between the glass of the clock and the face, was a load of _beans._  
  
"what, guys, what - ?" he started rubbing his temples, swiveling around to face the others, "that was supposed to be dinner, guys - ... guys?"   
.  
.  
.  
When Classic turned around, everyone was mysteriously gone. 


	5. basketball, skee ball, and ddr.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and the boys get to spend some quality time at Dave and Buster's. Then, at the end, Classic gets a turn of events.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Want more Fluff/Headcanons/Imagines/Art? You can follow my Tumblr:
> 
> \- [My Tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/sabelisajacques)  
> 

_"KILLIN' IT, CHILLIN' IT WITH ALL MIGHT - "_  
  
"bro, you've just been repeating the same lyric over and over again. issat even proof that you can rap?"  
  
"I don't know; he _is_ saying it pretty fast without stuttering."  
  
"HA! SEE, THEY AGREE WITH ME, SANS. YOUR OPINION OF MY ELOQUENCE IS IRRELEVANT - JUST LOOK AT YOUR OUTFIT, _DAWG."_  
  
"that just means that you've memorized the lyric - "  
  
"YOU'RE LYING! HUMAN-CHAN, TELL MY BROTHER THAT HE IS LYING."  
  
"You're lying."  
  
"sweetheart, ya sidin' with him over me? a cruel world that we live in."  
  
"Well, if you don't want to hear his _bomb_ rap skills, then you can switch the song."  
  
"CHANGE THE SONG FROM THE _CLASS 1-A RAP?_ BROTHER, HAVE YOU A DEATH WISH?"  
  
"no, but i have a wish ta change the song."  
  
"IF YOU CHANGE THE SONG, I PROMISE YOU THAT I'M GOING TO TAKE AWAY YOUR CHOP SUEY RATIONS FOR THE NEXT TWO WEEKS!"  
  
" _screech_ , anything than that. wait, hol' on, that's a good idea actually."  
  
"UPHOLDING YOUR ASIAN NOODLES?"  
  
"Forcing you to fast?"  
  
"no, blegh. _chop suey_ \- the song. i'm gonna change the song ta chop suey."  
  
"Ohh, that makes so much more sense. There would have been no way that you could have survived solely on a strict mustard and burger diet for two weeks without your noodles."  
  
"ESPECIALLY WITH THE EXTRA TRAINING THAT I WOULD BE ADDING TO THE MIX!"  
  
_"broshinkis ..."_  
  
"Okay, okay. I mean, it's not that bad of a song, but I'd much rather listen to something else."  
  
"I AGREE! MY PALETTE ISN'T NECESSARILY IN THE MOOD FOR HARD ROCK AT THE MOMENT. WE NEED SOMETHING LIGHT BEFORE THE MAIN COURSE, BROTHER!"  
  
"then whaddya guys have in mind? we can compromise."  
  
"Definitely _Everyday, Bro_ by Jake Paul; I've been addicted to it for a hot minute. You ever heard the chorus? You know, the _it's every - "_  
  
" _\- day, brooooo._ yeah, i've heard it. one of the worst things i've ever been subjected ta."  
  
"Hey, it's not _that_ bad!"  
  
"ACTUALLY, HUMAN-CHAN, I HAVE TO AGREE WITH MY BROTHER ON THIS ONE. THAT SONG TOTALLY BLOWS!"  
  
"Fine. Papyrus, what do you suggest, then?"  
  
"LET ME THINK! HMM ... AH, WE COULD LISTEN TO _PONPONPON_ BY KYARY PAMYU PAMYU!"  
  
"Bro! I just rocketed - _seriously_? You like JPOP?"  
  
"MUSIC FROM OTHER COUNTRIES IS TERRIFIC - THOUGH, NOT AS TERRIFIC AS ME, OF COURSE. THE LANGUAGE OF MUSIC DOESN'T NEED TRANSLATION TO SOUND GOOD."  
  
"Good message, just wasn't expecting that answer."  
  
"yeah, nice meaning, but i'm more of a german _partyschlager_ fan myself. so i really don't wanna hear that."  
  
"That means that we really haven't compromised yet."  
  
"WHAT ELSE COULD WE POSSIBLY LISTEN TO, THEN?"  
  
"..."  
  
"Guys, I think I may have an idea. Pass me the aux chord, Sans."  
  
"all right, depending on what ya play, i may or may not hafta shove ya out of this car."  
  
"Nah, this song's pretty dope. Just wait."  
  
"..."  
  
_" ... This world would not be quite so cold with Harry ... "_  
  
"is he wailin' harry styles' name five whole times?"  
  
"AND WHY IS THIS SONG SO VULGAR?"  
  
"It's _Rock Opera;_ plus, the band's Australian. I think a lot of this is a bunch of inside jokes."  
  
“WELL, WE DON’T UNDERSTAND THESE REFERENCES, HUMAN-CHAN. YOU SHOULD TRY TO REMEMBER THAT NEXT TIME BEFORE YOU PLAY TRASH.”   
  
“i think it’s pretty good - “  
  
“IRRELEVANT! REMEMBER?”  
  
“Aw, come on. It’s not that bad. I could have been playing Jake Paul.”   
  
“HMM, WHICH FATE TO SUFFER? SUCH A DIFFICULT CHOICE.”   
  
“Throw me a bone, man, it’s - ah, Papyrus! The turn! You missed the turn!”   
  
“WHAT? AH! OH, OH, DEAR. THERE’S SO MUCH TRAFFIC!”  
  
“paps, just slow down a lil’ and then we can find a way to calmly navigate through the traffic and get back on track - “  
  
“CANNOT DO! WE MUST BARREL THROUGH AND LET THE WEAK FEND FOR THEMSELVES!”  
  
“No, no, no, Paps. I agree with Sans on this one. This looks very dangerous and the only way through would be to jerk sharply around that u-turn. Maybe if we just pull into a different parking lot, we can find a _legal_ way back into traffic and - “  
  
“ALSO CANNOT DO, HUMAN-CHAN! THE MAGNIFICENT AND TERRIBLE PAPYRUS DOES NOT TAKE THE EASY WAY OUT!”   
  
“wait, wait, paps, hold on, seatbelt not on, lemme, ahhh - !”  
  
“Papyrus! The semi! _The semiiii!”_  
  
\---  
Miraculously, the three of you were now parked safely in the parking lot to Dave and Buster’s.   
  
“Woo, didn’t think we’d survive that one,” you mused with a wide grin prancing up your features. The car door clapped loudly shut behind your frame, echoing slightly in the lot that wasn’t as full as it normally would be. Though, technically, that could probably be because Blaise wanted to come here on a weekday to be able to get the full experience of entertainment.   
  
Fortunate, really.   
  
“i would say my favorite part was the lasers, but i’m still surprised we’re breathin’ right now,” Russet mumbled as he nearly pooled out from the passenger’s side. His brow ridge was beaded with thick globs of sweat and there was a nervous rictus grin on his face. Honestly, he looked _wrecked_.   
  
“MY FAVORITE PART WAS DEFINITELY THE SOUL-STEALER,” Blaise claimed as he stepped out, too. He brushed off his shoulder pads, a proud smirk plastered across his sharp features, and glanced at his brother, “AND SEE, SANS, I KNEW THAT WE WOULD MAKE IT OUT IN TIP-TOP CONDITION.”   
  
Russet only responded with a weak thumbs-up and a singular dip of his skull.  
  
“HMPH,” Blaise huffed audibly, shifting his focus back down to your frame. “HUMAN-CHAN, I FIGURE THAT YOU SHOULD PROBABLY LEAD THE WAY AS YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE WHO’S ACTUALLY BEEN HERE BEFORE.”   
  
You nodded, gesturing with waving your hand in half-circles, “Sure, come on.”   
  
After Russet rounded the back of the vehicle and was awkwardly waiting by your other side, the brothers then trailed after your upbeat gait. You couldn’t help but feel your smile grow; you’re excited. The games at this restaurant weren’t bad and they always supplied a good source of inside jokes, as well as the opportunity to lovingly mock one another. It was perfect for some friendly competition - that was the main reason Blaise had even agreed to go to a joint that had ‘SUCH GREASY FOOD’. Russet had been in the moment he heard they sold burgers and fries.   
This led your trio to where they are now.   
  
Once you leaned against the glass doors of the threshold, Blaise and Russet to a brief moment to look around at the interior. Their eyelights were glittering slightly, flickering to and fro to be able to see everything at once.   
  
The centerpiece of the restaurant was the bar, squared in by the island lined by chairs and roofed by multiple, giant flatscreens that were constantly playing sports tournaments. Waiters were scurrying about, shuffling through the small crowd of people already up and at the games galore coating the entirety of the establishment, and a few smiled at your group before continuing on their way.   
  
It took a few moments before one of the waiters even raced over towards the entrance, a few menus in their hand and an out-of-breath expression plastered across their features. They halted just a stride from you, exhaled heavily, and readjusted the menus before posing in the iconic greeter-waiter pose.   
  
“Room for three?” you nodded; they gestured with a curl of two of their fingers to follow, “Awesome! Right this way, please.”   
  
As your group shifted and trekked after the waiter, Blaise continued thoroughly scrutinizing the abode. His sockets were narrowed, face pinched slightly in a barely noticeable scowl, and he harrumphed before leaning down to your height, “ARE WE GOING TO SERIOUSLY HAVE TO EAT AT THE BAR?”  
  
You glanced around, finding the few tables in sight occupied, and sheepishly shrugged, “Don’t know, maybe? That’s not going to bother you, is it?”   
  
“YES!! I WAS HOPING TO TRY AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE - APPETIZER, SIDES, MAIN COURSE, _AND_ DESSERT! HOW CAN I HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH THAT IF WE’RE STUCK AT THE ISLAND?” Blaise crossed his arms, two puffs of air existing from his nasal cavity, and glared at the back of the waiter’s head. Oh, right. The food.   
  
“Hmm, then let me ask them,” you momentarily excused yourself from Blaise and jogged forward to meet the waiter’s side, “Excuse me, uh, sorry to bother you, but - are there any more tables left open? My friend really wants to sit at one.” You offered your politest smile as the waiter faced you, feeling slightly nervous as you poked your index fingers together.   
  
“Well, we _do_ have one more left,” the waiter met your gaze, their smile a little uneasy, “but a lot of people don’t prefer being seated there.”   
  
“Oh, we don’t mind!” you reassured, feeling weight lift off your shoulders. “We’d really appreciate being placed there, please.” At this, the waiter averted their eyes slightly, and shrugged slowly,   
  
“ _Allllll_ right, then follow me.”   
\---  
“HUMAN-CHAN, WHAT IS THIS.”   
  
“A table?”  
  
_“why’d you leave a table up on the table - “_  
  
“I SEE THAT IT IS A TABLE. WHAT I AM ASKING IS WHY IS IT _HERE_!” Blaise stomped his foot, glowering at the table.   
  
The waiter had already absconded, so that left your trio standing awkwardly around the table. However, the catch was, unsurprisingly, the fact that said table was currently placed along the center of the games. When the waiter said that people didn’t like to sit here, you’re fairly certain you understand why now.   
  
“Let’s not worry about that, Papyrus,” you tried to calm him down, facing him with an earnest grin, “come on, we have plenty of room for food now. That means you can get as much as you want!”   
  
Blaise seemed to be mulling over that, considering the pros and cons, before he heaved a sigh and reached for a chair. It slid soundlessly over the carpeted floor, and with a roll of his eyelights, Blaise settled himself down, “FINE. BUT BE PREPARED TO HELP ME EAT EVERYTHING ON THIS MENU!”   
  
_“Everything?_ Paps, that’s gonna be expensive,” you blinked once exaggeratedly, plopping down with him, “plus, isn’t that a bit much to be able to eat?”   
  
Russet all but fell into his chair, making it rock side to side unsteadily as he thrust his arm forward and swiped up a menu, “yeah, boss, didja bring enough money to pay for that?”   
  
Blaise waved his hand around carelessly, menu in other hand, and said, “I THOUGHT THAT HUMAN-CHAN WAS GOING TO PAY FOR IT.”   
  
You blanched.   
  
“Woah, woah, wait, what - “  
  
“Hi! What can I get y’all started with tonight?”   
  
Before you were able to ask Blaise to clarify that you were going to be paying for this entire meal - especially since it seemed like he wanted to order a smorgasbord - and try to compromise, a different waiter arrived to take your orders. You deadpanned, shook your head slightly, and suddenly felt very thankful that you had been smartly saving your money up for a long time.   
  
It took a couple of moments, but the three of you hurriedly skimmed over the menu. Drinks were first, so those weren’t as hard to think of. Blaise ended up ordering a Strawberry Lemonade, stating bitterly that he was, unfortunately, the driver and couldn’t consume any alcohol. Russet, with a smug smirk stretching his teeth, ordered a Classic Bloody Mary - then he winked at you. It must have been some sort of inside joke that you didn’t quite catch. You, after humming to yourself awkwardly, just went with one of those Green Ghost Glow Kones.  
  
Then, after the waiter nodded and trekked off, the three of you began scouring the menu.   
  
“What do you guys think would be a good appetizer? I’m at a loss,” you mumbled, brows furrowed.   
  
Blaise hummed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, “I THINK I QUITE LIKE THE NAME ‘PRETZEL DOGS’, SO WE SHOULD DEFINITELY TRY THOSE FIRST! AND THE NACHOS!” Russet leaned forward, looking over the photo accompanying the nachos, and nodded.   
  
“we splittin’ all this?” You and Blaise shifted your focus to him.  
  
“Splitting the food? Why?” Russet snuffed slightly, head swiveling slightly on its axis as he stared directly into your eyes.   
  
“boss wants ta try as much as possible. wouldn’t it be smarter ta let him order all that he wants and then we all try it so that we don’t have to spend extra on food for all of us?” You broke eye contact with Russet and momentarily flickered them over to Blaise; he seemed to be contemplating it.   
  
“BROTHER, AS MUCH AS IT PAINS ME TO ADMIT, THAT PLAN IS INGENIOUS,” Blaise commented, pressing the menu against his face and skimming it over thoroughly, “THAT MEANS WE CAN ORDER A LOT MORE NOW!” You deadpanned, quirking a brow as you angled your head toward Russet. He noticed your expression, grimacing slightly, and also buried his face in his menu.   
  
It didn’t take very long for the waiter to return with your drinks. They placed Blaise’s lemonade down first; its pink color swirled a little as it settled. He scrutinized his drink very carefully before he took a slight sip, humming in content as it seemed to suit his fancy.   
  
Then, Russet’s drink was next. His drink was a very dark burgundy - in a way, it did kind of resemble barely congealed blood. There was a piece of celery logged over the top, a slice of lime balancing on top of that with an olive slice through it with a skewer to keep it in place. The finishing touch was the crisped bacon slid into the liquid. Whenever Russet caught you staring, he winked before scooching the drink closer to him with a curl of his fingers.   
  
Finally, after gawking at all of the others’ drinks, yours was placed right before your eyes. Salt brimmed the lip of the glass, a slice of lemon bobbing out slightly from kiwi-green liquid; but, the drink was only made complete by the multi-colored ice cube glowing in the middle. You gasped, used a straw to twirl it around a bit, and then grinned wolfishly at your tablemets as you thanked the waiter.   
  
“Bruhs, check this cool,” you chuckled, still twirling the ice cube around, and Russet lurched forward over the table to try to press his face up against the cup.   
  
“i don’t see so well, maybe you’d better let me try it instead,” Russet then made grabby-hands, about to snatch your drink away before you could swat him - but Blaise cleared his throat. The two of you halted, briefly glanced over to him, and noticed his scowl.   
  
“THE WAITER IS HERE WAITING TO TAKE OUR ORDER! SO STOP CAUSING A RUCKUS,” Blaise gestured toward the waiter that was awkwardly watching your group with a nervous smile plastered across their features. Immediately, you and Russet straightened up and rocketed back into your seats, hands crossed and smiling politely at them. Blaise huffed, rolling his eyelights, and then faced the waiter, “NOW, ARE YOU READY TO TAKE OUR MAGNIFICENT AND GRAND ORDER?”   
  
The waiter’s smile became something a little more genuine as they clicked their pen and flipped their notepad over to the next page, “As ready as ever, sir!”   
  
“HMM, GOOD. I WILL BE LISTING NOT ONLY THE APPETIZERS, SIDES, AND MAIN COURSES, BUT THE DESSERTS AS WELL! EXCEPT, HOLD THOSE UNTIL WE HAVE FINISHED DINNER. NOW, TO START OFF WITH, WE’D ENJOY TRYING THE SWEETLY NAMED PRETZEL DOGS, THOSE CANTINA NACHOS - YES, THAT IS HOW IT IS PRONOUNCED! THEN THOSE LOADED PHILLY CHEESESTEAK SLIDERS! THE FIRE-GRILLED STEAK, MAYBE THE FIRE-GRILLED SALMON, TOO! I WANT TO ALSO TRY THE BUSTER’S CHEESEBURGER! I NEED TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO BURGERS! A CHICKEN TOSTADA SALAD, SINCE I NEED TO MAINTAIN MY HEALTHY STATUS! THEN, FOR SIDES, I WOULD LIKE TO ORDER SOME FRENCH FRIES, GARLIC MASHED POTATOES, AND THEN SEASONAL VEGETABLES. AND, FINALLY, FOR DESSERTS - WE’D LIKE TO ORDER THE ONLY THING AVAILABLE WHICH IS THE TRIPLE LAYER CHOCOLATE CAKE.”   
  
And then all three of you just blankly stared at Blaise.   
  
He seemed to vibrate slightly under the imploring stares, face suddenly flushing a vibrant crimson red as he shouted, “WHAT! I SAID THAT I WANTED TO TRY AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE - AVERT YOUR GAZES!”   
  
The waiter then returned to scribbling down the items he listed off while you and Russet shared a wide-eyed glance; his looked shocked while yours had a few fat tears dramatically pooled in the corners of your eyes just like in an anime whenever you held up your credit card sadly. In just a few more moments, the waiter finished writing and then repeated the order back to Blaise just to confirm. Everything sounded all right, so with a nod and a quick snatch-up of all the menus, the waiter was off.   
  
“boss, ya sure that we can even manage ta eat all a’ that between us? That sure was a lotta food,” Russet furrowed his brow ridge, a strange expression laced through his features.   
  
You nodded, turning to face Blaise, “Yeah, he’s right. And, you know, since this meal really isn’t on _your_ dime … heh.”   
  
Blaise, features stony, only said, “WELL, THEN YOU TWO BETTER EAT ALL OF IT, THEN!”  
\---  
“Man, do you guys _even_ get fed at home, though?” you casually leaned forward, propped up on your elbow.   
  
“OF COURSE WE DO! IN FACT, I AM QUITE THE CULINARY GENIUS MYSELF,” Blaise proclaimed, one of his hands placed atop his chest.   
  
“my favorite special ingredient a’ his is whenever he accidentally breaks the glass bottles in the mix and cooks it in,” Russet snickers with a smarmy grin slapped across his face. You legitimately blew air out of your mouth as soon as he said that, slapping a hand over your face and fixing Blaise with an incredulous expression.   
  
“Wait, so you actually serve glass with your meals at home?” Blaise released a high-pitched noise, stiffening his hand and slicing it down onto the top of Russet’s skull as he huffed.   
  
“SHUT IT, YOU HEADLESS CHICKEN,” Blaise clinked his teeth shut for effect, now glowering at you. “THE GLASS ADDS FLAVORING!” You couldn’t help but laugh, shaking your head softly as your hand fell from your face and down to your lap.   
  
“I’m sure it does,” a smirk curved your lips, hoping that appeased Blaise enough, and continued, “Do the rest of you also cook like that?”   
  
“hell ta the no,” Russet was the one to respond, having dipped his head out of the way and glancing at you over Blaise’s still hand, “there’s only a couple of us that cook like boss here.”  
  
“AS IF! I’M THE ONLY CHEF IN THE HOUSE WITH SUCH SKILL LEVEL!” Blaise’s interjection went ignored by you and Russet.   
  
“I see,” you nodded, “such as? What do the others make?”   
  
“well, there’s the cheesepuff, vanilla’s brother, he makes spaghetti a lot,” Russet then leaned closer, voice lowered to a whisper, “he burns all the noodles, yet they’re always raw. i think the sauce is also made wit’ that play-doh stuff.”   
  
You blanched.   
  
“That … that sounds …” you couldn’t quite find the right words to describe it.   
  
“HORRENDOUS?” You nodded.   
  
“it is, trust me,” Russet shook his head, shuddering slightly, “then there’s blue. he … he’s earnest, at least. all his taco meat is ingrained wit’ hyper-realistic glitter and sparkles. and all the other ingredients are charred.”   
  
“Wow, wait, how did he manage to char stuff like _lettuce?”_ you asked, head tilted back animatedly and one brow arched.   
  
“that’s the mystery,” Russet responded with a shrug, “but that’s _nothing_ compared ta what black could do.” Your gaze was momentarily distracted, drawn to Blaise as even _he_ shivered after hearing that sentence. You frowned; how bad could Black’s cooking be?   
  
“Do I want to know?” you jested, slightly weary. Russet, noticing how unsettled you’d become, smirked even wider and sinisterly. He nodded.  
  
“oooh, yeah, his is the best one yet,” Russet inhaled, sockets closed, and licked the brim of his teeth. “so, black’s thing is burritos, right?”   
  
You nodded, head tilted to the side and preparing your stomach for the worst.  
  
“well, he likes to put elmer’s glue in his,” Russet reopened his sockets, eyelights shining brilliantly and directly into your own, “but that’s not all. he knows how to make burned meat bubble and how to purposefully use pancake mix for the wraps. his finishing touch? decoration sprinkles for crafts and raspberries.”   
  
You blinked.   
  
Then you blinked a couple more times.   
  
“What? How? How did that even happen?” you shook your head, brows furrowed, _“Who_ could even let that happen?”  
  
Russet rubbed his chin thoughtfully, his hum noncommittal, “dunno. maybe his brother? or maybe it’s the curse of the younger brother -”  
  
“OH, COME OFF IT, SANS!” Blaise finally spoke, nudging his brothering and then facing you, “HE’S SAID THAT EVER SINCE I WAS A BABYBONES! AND IT’S ONLY GOTTEN WORSE SINCE WE’VE COME TO THIS UNIVERSE AND THERE ARE OTHERS LIKE US.”   
  
“What’s the ‘curse’, then?” your head straightened up, focus now fully on Blaise.   
  
“JUST THIS RIDICULOUS NOTION THAT EACH SET OF BROTHERS WILL HAVE A YOUNGER BROTHER THAT IS ETERNALLY A BAD COOK,” Blaise slammed his fist down onto the table, rattling it and the glasses on it - you barely had time to catch your glass before it toppled over. “WHICH IS INCORRECT! I AM THE EXCEPTION TO THAT CURSE.”   
  
Your irises flickered over to Russet, seeing him exaggeratedly shake his head. Hm, best to amuse Blaise, then.   
  
“Well, unfortunately, I’ve never had the opportunity to try your cooking,” you sadly hung your head, “so that means I can’t really help you win this conversation.” Russet’s poorly attempted concealing off his snickering went unheard by Blaise, who - instead of trying to bash his brother’s brains in again - hummed and nodded.  
  
“YOU ARE QUITE CORRECT, DEAR HUMAN-CHAN! YOU HAVE _NOT_ TRIED MY COOKING,” Blaise proudly placed his hand on his chest and grinned handsomely, “SO THAT MEANS YOU’LL HAVE TO COME OVER FOR DINNER SOON TO SEE FOR YOURSELF HOW I DO NOT FALL UNDER THAT CURSE.”   
  
Your bemused expression immediately fell from your face, as did Russet’s.   
  
“uhhh, boss, i don’t know about that - “   
  
“NONSENSE! WE WILL SNEAK THEM IN WHENEVER THAT CREAMPUFF’S OUT OF THE HOUSE,” Blaise nodded assuringly, staring intently at your face, “I’M SURE THE OTHERS WOULD LOVE TO HELP.”   
  
You sputtered, “W-well, that’s very nice and all, but, um, wouldn’t it be, er, more fun if we made food … _together_?”   
  
Blaise seemed to be considering this offer. He leaned back into his chair, arms crossed, and stroked his chin. Then, with a snap of his fingers, he grinned.   
  
“YOU’RE RIGHT! WE SHALL MAKE A FUN MEAL TOGETHER AND THEN RUB IT IN THE OTHERS’ FACES THAT THEY WON’T BE ABLE TO EAT SUCH DELECTABLE FOOD.”   
  
You chuckled awkwardly, “Yeaaah, sure. We can do that - hey, then you’ll also get to try my food, too.”   
  
Blaise clasped his hands together, dipping his skull, “YES, I’M AWARE! I CANNOT WAIT, HUMAN-CHAN. BROTHER!”   
  
Russet jerked slightly, nervously glancing at Blaise, “ … yeees?”   
  
“YOU WILL DO THE GROCERY SHOPPING WITH THEM TO COLLECT ALL OF THE INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR A LASAGNA! THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT TASK, SO DO NOT MESS IT UP!” He glowered at Russet, who shrank back into his shoulders and nodded appeasingly several times.   
  
“sure thing, boss,” Russet smirked, flashing a finger-gun, “ya know me - number one grocery shopper.”   
  
Russet lamely finished, but Blaise was already refocusing back onto you.   
  
“ALL RIGHT, THEN, HUMAN-CHAN!” Blaise exclaimed loudly, his voice echoing, “IT’S BEEN ESTABLISHED! WE ARE GOING TO COOK TOGETHER THE NEXT TIME YOU ARE FREE!”   
  
You shrugged your acquiescence, “can do.” And, no sooner than had you agreed, Russet pointed past your table and spook.   
  
“food’s here,” he mumbled. Whenever you and Blaise turned to look, you could see multiple waiters carrying trays filled with platters of steaming hot food. Your mouth started watering just seeing it; the scent of greasy, joint food wafted through the air.   
  
The food was then settled around the table, the waiters excusing themselves after checking that your group didn’t need anything else. But you didn’t even get the chance to pick up your utensils before Blaise leaned forward, a menacing look lacing his features, and said,   
  
“REMEMBER, YOU TWO! WE EAT _EVERYTHING!”_  
\---  
“boss, please, _no_ ,” Russet groaned, hand resting over where his stomach would be.   
  
“OH, COME OFF IT, YOU NINNIES! IT WASN’T EVEN THAT MUCH FOOD,” Blaise curved around the table and grabbed ahold of the back of Russet’s chair, “AND NOW I WOULD LIKE TO WRECK THESE PITIFUL LOOKING CHILDREN’S GAMES! YOU TWO ARE COMING WITH ME.”   
  
Then, before Russet could even respond, he was unceremoniously dumped out of his seat. He sputtered, hit the ground like a sack of potatoes, and weakly wheezed out air.   
  
You pitied him, feeling the same full feeling he was and knowing that you would have probably projectile vomited had Blaise done that to you. Speaking of Blaise, … you happened to glance up just in the nick of time before Blaise could throw you from your seat, as well.   
  
Though it was probably a bad idea, you sprang to your feet - your stomach briefly whirling - and held your palms up, “Yes! We’re coming.”   
  
Blaise scrutinized you for a moment longer, then harrumphed, and strutted for the games.   
  
“THEN COME ALONG NOW! I WILL MAKE SURE TO START OFF WITH SOMETHING EASY FOR YOU TWO!”   
  
Russet met your uneasy gaze as he released another moan, sat up, and shook his head.   
  
What could it possibly be?   
  
…  
  
“Are those giant piano keys?” you leaned in, “why is there only four of them?”   
  
Blaise waved off your question as he plopped down into the hard plastic benches in front of the screen and keys, “IT DOESN’T MATTER! JUST WATCH ME BE THE MASTER AT THIS.”   
  
As he was fishing out some coins, Russet leaned against your shoulder and arched a brow, “do ya even know how ta play?”  
  
“OF COURSE, I DO! WHAT DO YOU TAKE ME FOR?” but, after Blaise said that, it seemed like he paused momentarily to scan the instructions on the screen before sliding the coin into the proper slot. “SEE, WATCH THIS!”  
  
There was a three-second countdown that appeared across the screen, blinking with each number before it eventually disappeared and the game started. Blaise’s sockets slit, his vibrating eye-lights intensely bright as he focused on the game. His hand started beating whatever key appeared from the bottom of the screen, his reflexes awe-worthy. He was playing it perfectly!   
  
“Woah, Paps, you really _are_ good at this game,” you commented, excitement lacing your tone. You were bouncing in place, clapping your hands as you urged him on, “dude, I think you’re going to break the high score!”   
  
“not gonna lie, though, he totally looks like he’s playin’ patty-cake right now,” Russet chuckled teasingly, but his eye-lights were rattling around in his sockets as he tried to chase after all the notes being played.   
  
Blaise growled, “BROTHER! I CAN STILL HEAR YOU!”   
  
Even though it had only been a momentary distraction, it had been enough for Blaise to accidentally click the wrong key and then the machine blared a buzzer loudly throughout the establishment. The entire screen was doused red, a fat ‘X’ across the screen, and Blaise shook with fury.   
  
“WHY, YOU!” he pivoted around quickly, hand at the ready to wrap around Russet’s neck and thoroughly eradicated him. Russet, noticing this, struggled in place before pointing forward.   
  
“b-but, boss, look! ya made the high score!”   
  
Pausing, briefly glancing over his shoulder, Blaise realized that he had, in fact, did just that.   
  
“NYEH HEH HEH! I TOLD YOU TWO; I AM THE GREATEST!” Blaise planted both of his legs apart, hands on his hips, and sneered at the game. “IT WASN’T EVEN THAT HARD.”   
  
“Yeah, so let’s go on to something else that’ll be more of a challenge for you,” you interrupted, hoping to distract Blaise. It seemed to work - especially since Russet shot you a grateful glance - as Blaise nodded, trekking forth into the arcade.   
  
“NONSENSE! THIS IS STUFF FOR A BABYBONES,” Blaise stated with a sharp exhale.   
  
You shrugged, “Sure, you’re right. Okay, then, what’s next?”   
  
“MY MORTAL ENEMY,” Blaise glowered at something in the distance.   
  
…  
  
“Clowns?” you asked, slightly out of curiosity and amusement.   
  
“YES! THEY’VE BEEN THE BANE OF MY EXISTENCE EVER SINCE MY CHILDHOOD,” Blaise stomped his foot, reaching forward towards the basketballs being released by the machine, “THEY _TAUNT_ ME.”   
  
Russet had already placed a couple of coins in there, so he reached forward and snagged a ball with a subtle wink.   
  
“i paid, might as well play, yeah?”   
  
You glanced at the game at his words, seriously considering the offer. It was a basketball shooter game; you could pelt balls at the clown pawns in the back and get points correlating with the number printed on their bellies. You hummed, tilted your head to the side, and shrugged.   
  
What could it hurt?   
  
So, grabbing a ball of your own, the three of you spent the next _hardest_ minute of your life throwing the balls as fast as possible and trying to hit all the targets while also striking them as soon as they straightened back up.   
  
Eventually, though, the buzzer gonged and then the game was over.   
  
“LOOK AT THAT! ONLY THREE HUNDREDS POINTS,” Blaise stomped his foot and crossed his arms. “HOW LAME!”   
  
You chuckled, feeling sweat bead your brow as you tried to ignore the slightly crestfallen feeling, “Ah, we still have more opportunities at points. Come on, let’s go try a classic.”   
  
Pointing off in another direction, you smiled as Blaise scrunched up into his shoulders and grumbled. Russet met your gaze and shrugged, red rivulets of sweat trickling downs his temples as he nudged you first with a bump to your shoulder.   
  
You grinned mischievously, returned the bump, and bounded forward after Blaise.   
  
…  
  
“SKEE BALL!” Blaise’s skull dipped forward with sockets as wide as saucers, “YOU REALLY EXPECT _ME_ TO PLAY SKEE BALL? HA! YOU MUST BE PLAYING.”   
  
“Nah, I’m completely serious,” you shrugged, stepping forward after fishing out a handful of coins. “This game’s a classic. How are we going to an arcade of sorts and then _not_ play _skee ball?_ We cannot.”   
  
“sweetheart’s right, boss,” Russet was standing beside you, his phalanges scavenging through the wad of coins to jack some, “come on, it’s not that bad of a game.” He successfully nabbed a few, snickering and poking that strange, glowing red tongue of his out at you before sliding over a couple inches towards the machine set next to the right yours.   
  
“GAH, BUT IT’S SUCH A LET DOWN,” Blaise complained, a scowl etched into his features, as he moved toward the one opposite of your left nonetheless, “GIVE ME YOUR COINS, HUMAN-CHAN!”   
  
You deadpanned, but held out your hand in offering. Blaise’s scowl briefly shifted into a playful grin, but he attempted to wipe the look off his face - even though he utterly failed- as he diligently snagged the proper amount of coins needed.   
  
Blaise bent forward, slid the coins into the machine, and straightened his posture with a boisterous, “NOW, WATCH, YOU TWO NINNIES! I AM GOING TO TOTALLY AND SAVAGELY WRECK YOU AT THIS.”   
  
“Oh, it’s _on_ ,” you smirked, winking at Blaise. His face flushed with a twinkling crimson blush, but it was ignored by all as Russet had already started pelting the balls up the ramp with a victorious cackle of ‘three-sixty no-scope’.   
  
Then, Blaise and you scurried to catch up with Russet’s unrivaled skills. It was the hardest and shortest two minutes of your life as you all yelled as loudly as possible, eventually giving up with rolling the balls up the ramp and instead throwing them with as accurate of aim as you could get. The sound of balls slapping against cheap plastic and rolling back through the funnel quickly filled up the place; the game itself also released little celebratory noise each time a ball landed in one of the holes.  
  
By the time it was over, the three of you were panting harder than ever. You huffed, glancing down toward the coin slots as you awaited the tickets to come out. Your score wasn’t too shabby - a nice eleven thousand. Blaise’s score wasn’t far off from yours, just a little under a thousand less than yours. Russet, however, …  
  
“EIGHTY THOUSAND!” Blaise stomped his foot angrily, “THERE IS NO WAY THAT YOU MANAGED TO HIT THE TEN THOUSAND JACKPOT EACH TIME.”   
  
“oh, i definitely did,” Russet saucily winked, gesturing down towards the tickets that were blasting out. “check this cool.”   
  
Russet’s tickets were pouring out by the dozen, piling into a fat stack that just kept growing and growing and growing. Your jaw dropped, irises flickering down to the puny pile that both Blaise and you compiled. It was _nothing_ compared to Russet’s.   
  
“THIS BLOWS,” Blaise scooped up his tiny pile and huffed, “I’M GOING TO FIND A GAME THAT’S CERTAINLY MORE RIVETING AND FULFILLING THAN _SKEE BALL!”_  
  
With that, he was off. Your gaze met Russet’s wolfish expression one last time; then, after collecting your tickets, you followed after Blaise in mute shock.   
  
…  
  
“boss, ain’t no way in hell that you’re getting me on that thing.”   
  
Russet was standing a good foot or so away from Blaise and you, having finally located wherever the two of you had sped off while he waited for the skee ball machine to spit out the rest of his tickets.   
  
You shrugged, “Well, luckily for you, Sans, it’s only a two-player, anyway.”   
“AND IT’S CLEAR THAT YOU DON’T HAVE THE SKILL AND GRACE TO BE ABLE TO COMPETE AGAINST ME, EITHER,” Blaise grinned, having already stepped onto the platform of the competitive _Dance Dance Revolution_ set. The flashing lights and the sauve hype voice of the announcer had been what caught Blaise’s attention as he searched through the various games; and, fortunately, you happened to catch up to him whenever he paused to examine it.  
  
Thus, now the two of you were about to compete against one another.   
  
“Maybe you don’t have what it takes either, Paps,” you teasingly grinned, thumbing the arrow keys to find a song that was interesting enough, “I’ve got the heart of a dancer, ya know?”   
  
“HOGWASH! I BET YOU’RE JUST SAYING THAT BECAUSE YOU’RE SCARED OF LOSING TO THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE ME,” Blaise lurched his upper body closer to your side of the platform, probably also scanning the list of available songs.   
  
“As if,” your head ducked slightly into your shoulders, trying to hide the grin on your face as you finally selected a song, “Okay, I’ve been obsessed with this song ever since I found it to a _Spyro_ AMV. There’s no way you can win.”  
  
“UNFAIR, YOU ALREADY KNOW THE SONG,” Blaise’s brows furrowed, one socket twinging slightly, “WE SHOULD PICK ONE NEITHER OF US KNOW!”   
  
“I only know the song, not the dance,” you snapped him a set of finger-guns, “but, check it cool, it’s about to start.”  
  
The two of you then returned your focus back to the main screen, straightening up and going to each of your respective places. The announcer jested a bit, his smarmy voice doing a countdown with flashy circled numbers before the song _Butterfly (Delaction Remix)_ by Smile.DK started pounding through the speakers.   
  
Blaise and you went ham, dancing your littles hearts out. Both of you were slicing your arms and hopping your legs in every which way possible, doing everything in your power to hit every move correctly. There was a lot of laughter, screaming, and your loud bolting along to the song’s lyrics for the entirety of the match.   
  
By the time it was over, your face was completely red from laughing too hard and sweat trickled down your temples. Blaise didn’t look as winded as you, but there was a prominent flush across his cheekbones. Your score had been almost perfect, only missing the first chorus that happened due to your incessant chuckles. Blaise’s was close to yours, but he’d been so distracted by your singing that he’d missed a couple more hits than you.   
  
You jumped off the platform, high-fiving Russet as he joined in on the song’s lyrics. Blaise stayed on the platform, staring intently at the area where the coins went. This went on for at least thirty seconds, even after the screen shifted and it returned to taunting future people that happened to be passing by to give it a whirl. Finally, he cracked, spinning around on his axis so quickly with an offended look plastered across his features.   
  
“IT DOESN’T GIVE US TICKETS? EVEN AFTER ALL OF OUR HARD WORK!”  
  
You glanced at the game, noticed there were definitely no tickets, and shrugged, “It’s the memory of the fun that makes it worth it.”   
  
“GAH, CURSE YOU, DDR. CURSE YOU!”   
\---  
Your trio had played several more games, trying desperately to win as many tickets as possible. There were several games that your group repeatedly played, knowing that it was an easy success and that bombarding it would offer a galore of tickets.   
  
Russet also had to be the one to constantly carry over the smorgasbord of tickets over to the machine that automatically counted them, feeding them in a spool at a time with a deadpan as Blaise and you pointed at him and laughed mockingly. Then, once the machine printed out the receipt, you guys would keep playing.   
  
After all of that had been said and done, your group ended up with a total of six thousand tickets to claim prizes with.   
Whenever the employee behind the ticket register input the information into the computer, your group was free to start picking prizes. Blaise, even though his pride and selfish tendencies were high, offered to let you get whatever you wanted - saying that it made up for paying for the entire meal. Russet had shrugged off the prizes, saying that he wasn’t very materialistic in the first place and that he didn’t want anything.   
  
So, after a little debate and internal struggle, you had settled with a fake, blue-plastic trumpet, several cute stuffed animals, and a couple of whoopee cushions. The brothers had grimaced at the last option, but you chalked that up to them being weary of you pranking them with those. Finally, however, your group was exiting the restaurant and trekking through the parking lot.   
  
“Thanks for coming with me here tonight, guys,” you started off, shifting all of your prizes off to your opposite side to open the car door, “it really means a lot.”   
  
“wasn’t a thing at all, sweetheart,” Russet winked at you as he plopped down in the backseat of the car beside you. “never knew that my bro would get so easily addicted to gamblin’.” You two chuckled, ignored the indignation noise Blaise blurted out, and gave one another fist bumps.  
  
“Yeah, but at least he was good at it,” Russet nodded, shrugging softly.   
  
“AND BEFORE MY BROTHER CAN SAY ANYTHING ELSE,” Blaise turned around fully to address you, “I APPRECIATE THAT YOU BOUGHT THE MEAL, HUMAN-CHAN. WE SHOULD REALLY GO OUT TO EAT MORE OFTEN.”   
  
You nodded, “Definitely, boys.”   
  
Blaise then returned his attention back to the windshield, twisted the key in the ignition and the car roared back to life. You couldn’t help but glance out at the dark night sky twinkling with tiny, brilliant white stars as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the highway. A soft smile pranced across your lips as you felt your body sag back into the cushioned seats, your head teetering off to the side before resting against Russet’s shoulder.   
  
The soft hum of the radio lulling you to a peaceful sleep, Russet’s phalanges sweetly intertwining with yours.   
\---  
Soft, chilling ambiance and spooky music was the only thing wafting through the mostly silent home; a horror movie playing across the screen of the flat-screen television in the living room. Russet and Blaise were plopped down on at opposite ends of one of the couches, still giddy from yesterday’s escapade. They were feigning interest in the movie, more enthralled by the group chat with you than what was in front of them.   
  
All was fine in dandy, the two brothers occasionally snickered, nothing to interrupt them,   
  
until, …  
  
“so where’d you two go yesterday?” Classic winked into the living room, standing in between the couch and the TV, “you guys were awfully excited after coming home late last night. what’s up?”   
  
Blaise and Russet both startled, tossing their phones a few inches in the air before they scrambled to catch and pocket them. They both plastered false smiles across their teeth, expression uncomfortable as they released a couple of strained chuckles.   
  
“WELL, YOU SEE, WE JUST WENT TO DAVE AND BUSTER’S! YES, THAT’S ALL.” Blaise shifted, straightening his posture while mentally crossing his phalanges together.   
  
“yeah, just some bro on bro bonding time, ya know?” Russet hopped on board, relaxing back into the couch to make himself appear easy-going. He knew they probably looked suspicious to all hell and back to Classic right now; they literally flung their phones into the air whenever he popped into the living room.   
  
Classic, as keen and perceptive as he was, squinted his sockets and quirked a winged brow, “oh, is that so? because i’m pretty sure that i heard you mention someone’s name last night - “  
  
Before he could finish his state, however, a certain lazy fellow strolled on into the threshold with the strangest gait ever. 

  
It was Stretch.   
  
He waltzed on up to Classic, his iconic smirk curling his teeth upward as he paused just a couple of steps away from him. Classic fluttered his eyes a couple of times, angling his skull over to the side to size Stretch up. His expression clearly showed that he hadn’t enjoyed being interrupted.   
  
“hey, classic, man, you look a little stressed,” Stretch off-handedly commented, tilting his skull back to glance up and down Classic’s stature. “how’s about a little something to take off that edge?”   
  
Before Classic could even respond, Stretch reached an arm behind his back and retrieved a Mountain Dew soda can. He moved his arm, holding it out for Classic to take.   
  
Blinking, accepting the drink, Classic mumbled a soft, “thanks, i guess. i _was_ a little thirsty.”   
  
Then, without waiting another second, Classic popped open the tab. It fizzled, hissing out as it released the air trapped from the carbonation. Classic shrugged, lifted the can to his teeth, and leaned his skull back to take a sip … only for a couple of _beans_ to fall out instead.  
  
Classic sputtered, spitting the offending objects onto the ground, and looked at them in bewilderment, “w-what the? how did you even manage to do that? like, relabel the packaging or refill the entire can with beans with a brand new tab and all. i even heard carbonation in that - … guys?”   
  
Once again, Classic glanced up for answers, only to see that everyone was gone _again_.   
  
_“guys?”_


End file.
